


A nice trip to the forest

by MelFX179



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Arguing, Canon Compliant, Case Fic, Complete, Cuddling & Snuggling, Curses, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Explicit Language, F/M, Fluff, Horror, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, MSR, Monsters, Mulder in trouble, Oral Sex, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Relationship(s), Regret, Scully in Trouble, Season/Series 10, Sex, Shameless Smut, Smut, Torture, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-24
Updated: 2017-10-09
Packaged: 2018-12-06 08:21:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 24
Words: 31,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11596731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelFX179/pseuds/MelFX179
Summary: Mulder and Scully investigate a case of strange deaths in the Alaskan wilderness and learn that monsters come in all kinds of shapes.





	1. - One -

**Author's Note:**

> I've started this one a little while ago and it turned out to be harder to write than I thought. It still isn't finished but I'm forcing myself to write, now that I've put the first chapter online. I'll update irregularly - sorry.
> 
> The story takes place in season 10, probably after episode 2. I'm trying to be canon compliant. Can anybody tell me if Cold Cases is now officially canon? If yes, then I'm probably not compliant. Confusion, confusion...
> 
> There will be smut later, I know you want it ;)
> 
> Let me know what you think but be nice - I'm sensitive!
> 
> I don't own The X-Files.

„Scully, I know what you’re going to say but please just hear me out first!“

Fox Mulder was on fire. 

Dana Scully smiled but didn’t reply.

She knew these kind of outbursts - had known them for 25 years. 

Yet it filled her heart with happiness, seeing him like this. 

After years of darkness, reproaches, arguments, tears and regrets, this man before her finally resembled the man, she once fell in love with.

It was a slow process, but having him back at work and with that giving his life reason, Mulder managed to find his place again.

“Scully, are you listening at all?” Mulder asked, watching her suspiciously.

“Sure I am,” Scully defended herself, “I just can’t believe we’re hunting bigfoot again.” 

“We’re NOT ‘hunting bigfoot again’,” Mulder retorted, almost pouting, “we’ll be investigating a case of seven hikers who were found dead, probably brutally murdered, in the Alaskan wilderness after they had been missing for days. All of them had died of wounds that did neither resembled any known animal in that area, nor could they have come from a simple accident. And all of that happened over the course three months. There is the commonly known story about the Alaska Triangle and I think this has something to do with it. More than 16,000 people are said to have vanished in this area since 1988, Scully. Sixteenthousand people in almost 30 years. Imagine that!”

“It’s an unbelievable number, Mulder, I give you that. But do you really believe that some kind of Bermuda Triangle is responsible? I mean, there were hikers and paddlers – maybe they just got lost and died. Is that a tragedy? Yes, but it is a vast and mostly unexplored territory. People who are not experienced in the wilderness get lost all the time and there probably is a simple explanation for the strangeness of the wounds. Maybe a bear or different animals fed on the corpses altogether. And, by the way, we’re not even being summoned to this particular area where you say is the Alaska Triangle. We’ll be investigating south of Anchorage. “

“I know that, Scully. But what if whatever causes these deaths has left it’s ancestral territory and moved south?”

“Like that sea-monsterish alligator we hunted back in the day that moved after the frogs? Poor Queequeg!”

“Not a sea-monsterish alligator this time, Scully, Kushtaka.”

“Kushtaka.”

“Kushtaka is a demon. People say it looks like a cross between a man and an otter.”

Scully sighed. “Are you suggesting those people were killed by an otter-man?”

“You’re asking yourself if I’ve taken my meds, aren’t you?”

“Knowing me better than anyone, Agent Mulder!”

Scully got up from her office-chair and walked over to where Mulder had been pacing for the past ten minutes explaining the request he received and why it was paramount they investigated this case.

She stopped before him and put her hands on his biceps, stilling him.

“It’s worth checking out, Scully,” he said quietly, looking down at her.

“You’re right. It is. People have died. Something is happening in Alaska and we need to find out what.”

Mulder smiled and shyly planted a kiss in her hair.

“Thank you. I’ll let Skinner know we’re on it.”

++++

Assistant Director Skinner had gladly given his permission for Mulder and Scully to travel to Alaska - he seemed pleased with Mulder’s restored enthusiasm, had he witnessed the other side of his agent, too.  
A couple of months after Scully had left, Skinner paid Mulder yet another concerned visit only to find a shell of the man he once knew lying unconscious on his couch in a house that resembled a dump more than a home, an empty bottle of cheap scotch next to him.

After checking his vitals, Skinner turned him onto his side, just in case, to make sure that if Mulder vomited, he wouldn’t choke on his puke. He then took the bottle and all other alcoholic beverages he could find and emptied them in the sink. After that, he opened the windows of the house and began cleaning up.

12 hours later, Mulder finally awoke to the smell of coffee and breakfast.

He half expected Scully to be in the kitchen, but slowly through his pounding headache he remembered she was gone. He had made her go.

Skinner turned when Mulder entered the kitchen.

“Finally amongst the living. Sit down, drink that water there and wait ‘til breakfast’s ready.”

Skinner in full AD-mode. Better do what you’re told.

Mulder sat down at the kitchen-table and downed the glass of water Skinner had placed on it. He then slumped, steadying his head with his hands.

Skinner noisily rummaged through the counters, not caring that his former agent cringed at every sound, and finally put another glass of water and a plate with bacon, eggs and toast in front of him.

“Eat,” he simply ordered and took a seat at the table as well.

“Can’t. I’m gonna puke.”

“Nonsense. You’ll feel better once you ate. Now stop whining and eat.”

It took forever for Mulder to finish the plate but once he did, he really felt better. All the while, Skinner hadn’t said a word, just watched him. Mulder felt uncomfortable. He knew what was coming and somewhere deep inside, he knew he deserved it.  
Skinner took the empty plate and mug and put it in the sink before he returned to the table. This time, he didn’t sit but built up in front of Mulder.

“I’m sick of this shit, Mulder!”

“Then go. I didn’t invite you. And I don’t need you to babysit me,” Mulder replied weakly.

“Yeah, you don’t need a babysitter. You need someone to kick our ass. Look at yourself. You once were the best agent the FBI had. You had a reputation and a partner who had your back, no matter what. Now you’re just a 55-year old, miserable drunk, without a fucking life.”

Mulder looked up at Skinner, anger reflecting in his eyes.

“I was a fucking joke. My work was a fucking joke. My LIFE was a fucking joke,” he hissed, “and – by the way - you seem to forget that I was abducted , tortured, buried only to be transformed into a supersoldier, hunted. I hid, I was arrested, I was trialed, sentenced to death, I was on the run and then Scully…” his voice broke.

“You’re right. You went through a lot, I give you that. But Scully and you had overcome all this. The two of you together. You built a life outside the Bureau, you had Scully, you could have written that book you always talked about. But what did you do? Especially after that Father Joe case? You fell back into your old habits. You let the darkness back into your life and it consumed you. Scully told me about your 2012 theory, you know. She told me that you believed it would all end then. I know how strong your believe is, Mulder and I can only imagine what it did to you when nothing happened. Just another lie you fell for. I’m sorry for you, Mulder, I really am. But instead of sinking into a depression because the world didn’t fucking end, you should have embraced life, should have embraced the fact that you were with the woman you loved and she loved you back, Mulder. Hell, she loved you more than you probably realized and she went through all this shit with you. She would have gone even further but you chased her away. You cast her out until she saw no other way to save herself but to leave you. You ruined it, Mulder, you pathetic piece of shit.”

Mulder was up in an instant and threw himself at Skinner who was surprised by the outburst. But Skinner had been in training all those years and Mulder hadn’t and Mulder was pretty hung over right now, so it didn’t take much effort for Skinner to wrestle him to the ground.

Mulder kept throwing punches and writhed underneath him but Skinner finally caught his arms and quickly flipped him over, so Mulder was face-down, his arms pinned to the small of his back. Still he wouldn’t surrender.

“Fuck you, Skinner! Fuck you, the FBI, fuck everybody! Leave me the hell alone, you hear me? I said fuck off!” he screamed.

“Yeah, you’d like that, wouldn’t you? Me leaving you just like this. You could be the martyr once again and drown yourself in sorrow. Not happening, Mulder. I’ve just made a decision.”

Skinner now sat on top of Mulder, effectively holding him down until the man’s struggle subsided. Both men were breathing heavily and Skinner noticed Mulder weeping.

“Calm down, Fox! When you stop fighting, I’ll let you go, ok? But I need to know that if I do, you won’t harm either me or yourself, you understand? Nod if you understand.”

Skinner loosened his grip when Mulder nodded and stilled and finally let completely go, sitting down on the floor beside him.

“I don’t know what to do, Walter. I just don’t know what to do,” Mulder sobbed quietly.

“We’ll figure it out, buddy. I’ll help you get through this. You’ll clean up, you’ll pull yourself together, and you will seek counselling. I’ll speak with Scully when I see that you’re really trying to get better. But you really hurt her, Mulder. Winning her back will be the hardest part – if that’s what you want.”

“I want to get better,” Mulder turned and slowly sat up. His head was spinning. “I know that I’ve ruined it and I can’t forgive myself that.”

“We’ll work it out! Come on, get up. I want you to take a shower and then we’ll finish cleaning up this dump you call home.”


	2. - Two -

It was unusually warm for September in Alaska but inside the rental, the AC provided the agents with a pleasant chill.

Scully drove and happily hummed to a tune that was playing on the radio. Mulder in the passenger seat watched the world go by, once in a while glancing over to her and secretly admiring the view.

They had decided to drive from Anchorage instead of taking a seaplane which would have shortened their trip considerably. Now, they still had a two-hour-drive ahead of them and when passing an information sign for a roadside café, Mulder suggested a break.

The café was small and reminded Scully of a dollhouse, she once had as a child. There were drapes on the windows, lace cloth on the tables and bone china from which they drank their coffees. The owner looked like Mother Hulda from Grimm’s fairytales and welcomed them affectionately. They were the only guests.

Scully was enchanted and kept curiously looking around while Mulder nervously fidgeted with his tie; he had something he wanted to get off his chest.

“Uh Scully?”

“Have you seen that cuckoo clock over there, Mulder? Isn’t it pretty? I wonder if it really is from Germany or just a Chinese replica.”

“I didn’t know you liked that kind of kitsch.” 

“It’s neat, not kitsch. I’ve come to like this kind of craftsmanship. It’s solid, made to last.”

“I could get one for the house if you decided to…,” Mulder started but immediately regretted it when Scully’s face hardened. “I’m sorry Scully, I shouldn’t have mentioned it. I know we’re on fragile ground. I am on fragile ground. I didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable.” Stupid, stupid, stupid.

“I’m not ready to talk about all this again, Mulder. I need time. You and I working together again feels strange and I have to adjust to the situation.”

“Yeah, fuck I’m sorry. I understand, but I can’t deny that I am happy to have you near me again. I still can’t believe it and it feels good. I won’t lie or shut up about it.”

“I’m not expecting you to,” Scully answered with a smile, the moment of tension had passed for now. “So what did you want to say?”

“Uh, it was nothing. I just had this thought but it’s gone. Nevermind, wasn’t important.” Coward.

“OK, shall we get going?”

“Yeah, I’ll handle the check and we meet outside.”

They separated and Mulder went to Mother Hulda to pay the check.

“You and your wife make a pretty couple,” the old lady said.

“We’re just partners,” Mulder emphasized on the just, “we’re agents with the FBI.” It sounded strange to say these words again.

“You look like more than that to me but I don’t mean to get into your business.”

“No worries. Thanks for the excellent coffee and hospitality!”

“Come back soon!”

xxxx

A little under two hours later, they arrived in Homer, a small fishing village at Kachemak Bay. 

“The place is pretty popular with the tourists, that’s why the local police requested backup from the feds. They can’t have negative press,” Mulder explained while driving through town and towards the police station.

As soon as they had pulled into the parking lot, the station’s front door opened and a tall and muscular officer approached their vehicle.

Mulder looked over to Scully who nodded approvingly at the appearance.

“Don’t you think I didn’t see that, Agent Scully.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Mulder,” Scully replied and quickly got out of the car.

“Agents Scully and Mulder? I’m Sergeant Robson, thank you for coming up here and welcome to Alaska,” the officer greeted politely.

“Thank you, sergeant. We’ve been up here before, but already two decades ago. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see much of the state. There was a snowstorm at the time,” Mulder replied and thoughtfully left out the part with the –what he believed were extraterrestrial - worms.

“Sorry to hear about that. But this time, the weather’s really good and is supposed to stay that way a little longer. That’s why we’re hoping you can help us find the killer as quickly as possible.”

“So you think we’re dealing with a human?” Scully asked and earned sideway look from Mulder.

“Uh, maybe we should go inside to further discuss this matter,” Robson cut them short and turned to walk back into the station.

The agents exchanged looks and followed shortly behind.

“Take a seat,” the sergeant waved at them when they entered a conference room, “Coffee? Tea? Not sure we have tea though. Cold drinks?”

Mulder helped himself to a bottle of water and two glasses, filled both of them and handed one over to Scully.

“Why don’t you tell us what you really think is going on here, Sergeant Robson?” 

“Well, it’s not that easy to explain,” Robson hesitated but felt encouraged when he looked into Mulder’s open and attentive face. “There are these rumors about a monster in the woods. I’ve heard them since I was a child.”

Scully looked over to her partner who had straightened in his chair. The officer had his full attention.

“A monster? What kind of monster?” she asked.

“The kind of monster which feeds on people. It lures them away from the known trails of Kachemak Bay State Park, deep into the woods and when they’re without orientation, it strikes.”

“Have you ever heard of the Mothmen in West Virginia? What you’re describing sounds very much like them,” Mulder stated.

“Believe me, I’ve done all the research to find out what’s going on here. Of course I read about the Mothmen, too. It could be them. The thing is, nobody has ever seen anything. No tracks, no residues, nothing you could call housing. Those corpses we found, they were… well, torn apart.”

“Kushtaka?”

“No, Ma’am. I don’t think it was him either,” Robson deadpanned.

“What makes you think it wasn’t him?” Mulder asked.

“We’re too far South for Kushtaka for one. His territory is more to the North and covers roughly 300,000 square miles. Why would he move from that region to Kachemak Bay?”

“I don’t know, maybe his doc changed his dietary requirements.”

“What Agent Mulder’s trying to say is that we have to take all possibilities into consideration,” Scully intervened.

“Yeah, I get that. I mean that’s why I asked you guys to come up here after all. When I learned that the FBI had this unit specialized in those kind of creepy cases, I didn’t think twice. So considering all possibilities is just fine and exactly what we need.”

Mulder just nodded very professionally but Scully knew on the inside, he was cheering.

“So where do we start?” he asked.

“I’d like to take you to Halibut Cove Lagoon, that’s where the trail starts. We’ll hike to the places we found the corpses and keep looking for clues along the way. The ranger station there keeps a log so they know when hikers arrive, depart and to where they want to go. This is how we know when someone goes missing. We’ll hike those trails and hopefully come up with some new results. Our SAR teams found nothing out of the ordinary – that is excluding the dead hikers of course.”

“The plan sounds good to me. Let us just change into something more comfortable before we go, I don’t do suits in the forest anymore.”

“Sure. There are locker rooms at the end of the hall. I’ll pack our gear, tents and water and stuff and wait for you outside by the truck. We’ll have to take a boat from the spit to Halibut Cove where we’ll be dropped off.”

Robson left and Mulder and Scully went to the locker rooms. Upon entering the men’s locker, Mulder turned to Scully.

“I better not say that this will be a nice trip to the forest. We should consider those hikers being eaten by bugs, too.”


	3. - Three -

The boat ride to the lagoon took under an hour and Mulder, Scully and the sergeant were dropped off at a floating dock, together with their equipment. The tide was high.

“When the tide is low, sometimes you can see black bears on the shorelines. Actually you can see all kinds of wildlife around here. More than just otters. Keep your eyes open for porpoises or bald eagles as well.”

“It’s beautiful!” Scully exclaimed, “So remote and quiet.”

“Let’s get our gear up to the cabins. We won’t make it out in the woods today anymore, it gets dark soon. We’ll stay the night and start early in the morning. There are three cabins for tourists, two of them are occupied at the moment but the third one – you can see it from here on the far right – is where you’ll stay. I’ll stay at the ranger station, they have a spare bunk waiting for me.” Robson pointed to another building that marked the entrance of the State Park. “I gotta tell ya, water’s not running anymore, you need to use that from the canisters, and there are no restrooms in the cabins. There are, however, vaulted latrines. There’s no power as well. So, if you’re planning on using your laptops…”

“We’ll manage,” Scully replied thinking she had seen worse.

“Alright then. You guys settle and we’ll meet at the ranger station in 30 minutes. Karl is already waiting for us and will explain some of the rules and things we need to look out for, as he cannot join us.”

They took their backpacks and canisters and walked over a boardwalk to the third cabin.

“’Lagoon Overlook Cabin’, how appropriate,” Mulder noticed, pointing to a name sign while standing on the roofed patio that literally overlooked the lagoon. “I wished we could stay here for a couple of days. I can feel my mind already beginning to relax.”

Scully stood beside him, enjoying the view just the same.

“You’re right. Being so far away from everything has a soothing effect. Maybe you could go here on vacation.”

‘You’ Mulder thought. Not ‘We’.

“Well, I can have that at the house as well. It’s very quiet there, too.” He went inside, swallowing the lump in his throat.

Robson had mentioned the cabin would be rustic and he hadn’t exaggerated. There was a counter with a sink but no faucet, a heavy wooden table in middle together with two equally heavy wooden benches and a wood stove next to it. There were two adjacent rooms with bunk beds and Mulder figured they wouldn’t share one. He chose the one closest to the cabin’s front door which didn’t have a lock.

He put his backpack and sleeping bag in his room and even went so far as to unroll Scully’s in her room to make her bed. Scully, he saw her through the window, was still standing on the patio.

“I hope you don’t mind me choosing the room,” he said when he joined her again.

“No, it’s ok. Look at that, Mulder. I think that’s a porpoise over there!” Scully pointed in the direction but whatever it was, was gone.

“Robson’s got binoculars. Maybe we can borrow them later.”

“There! There it is again. Oh my god, there are two – no, three of them. Look!”

They both watched in awe as the porpoises swam through the lagoon, obviously looking for food.

“I’d never known you cared for porpoises that much, Scully.”

“I’ve never seen them in the wild before. It’s majestic!”

“Uh, we should get going. Robson’s probably waiting already.”

“You’re right, sorry. I kind of lost track of time.”

“As long as we haven’t ACTUALLY lost any, we’re good. Check your watch and see if we lost nine minutes.”

Scully playfully slapped his arm and smiled which again made Mulder smile. Scully smiling at him was rare these days and something, he couldn’t get enough of. Like air.

xxxx

They sat around a table, similar to the one in their cabin and studied a map of the park on which Karl, the park ranger, had marked several spots, together with photographs of the victims.

“I’ve tried to reconstruct the routes they took and landmarks they passed. Each color represents a different hiker. We’re not exactly sure where they were attacked – they definitely weren’t killed where we found them. Three of them used GPS and we were able to track their positions up to the moment their devices ceased to transmit, so we got an idea in which area that was and we think that the others went in the same direction, given the topography and the course of the trails,” he explained.

“Like I said before, our SAR teams found nothing in particular except the bodies. We searched this area with helicopters and IR cameras, as well as on foot with sniffer dogs. We were very thorough – as usual." “No abandoned equipment or maybe litter?” Scully asked.

“Well yeah, people litter all the time and everywhere they go. You wouldn’t believe the things we find in the woods. There were some things but we weren’t able to assign them definitely to the dead hikers .”

“Like what? What have you found?” Mulder dug deeper.

“Wrappers mostly. Shell casings, too – but those could be from hunters of course.”

“Fur? Claws? Maybe some kind of slime? Odd smell? Like rotten eggs?”

“Slime, sir? As in… puke?”

“I believe Agent Mulder’s thinking of bile,” Scully helped.

“Uh, no sir. No uh… bile. “

“Or ectoplasm,” Mulder added with a shrug.

“As for the smell: Yeah, some of the men reported about a weird smell but they thought maybe it was swamp gas. There were no decomposing animal carcasses around.”

“I’ve gone through the autopsy reports, they too were inconclusive although I must say your medical examiner did a very good job,” Scully added and Robson nodded in acknowledgement.

“I think we should call it a day if you guys want to leave here early tomorrow morning. You will see the rest for yourselves on-site. There’s no point dwelling on possible explanations without evidence.” Karl concluded and the three had to agree. The ranger ushered them out.

Mulder and Scully walked back to their cabin with flashlights leading the way.

“If you want to go to bed, go ahead Scully. I’ll stay up a bit longer. And if you need to use the latrine later, wake me up and I’ll walk there with you.”

“I’m a big girl, Mulder. I’m not afraid of the dark, you know, I just don’t like to be surrounded by it.”

“There’s always a flashlight somewhere,” Mulder joked but he knew that Scully wasn’t talking about the pitch-black night.

“Good night, Mulder.”

“Sleep well.”


	4. - Four -

Scully woke to sounds from the main room. She turned on her flashlight and looked at her watch, 3.05 am. She got up and shone the light across the room but there was nobody in. The door to Mulder’s room was open so she looked inside to find it empty. He must had gone to the latrine, she thought and went back to bed without falling asleep. Ten minutes later, Mulder still hadn’t returned and she got up again. Scully stepped on the porch and there sat Mulder, back towards the door, staring into the darkness.

“Hey,” she softly said, not to startle him.

“Did I wake you? I’m sorry, I thought I was quiet.”

“What are you doing?”

“Just thinking. I couldn’t sleep. The bunk’s not really comfortable.”

“It’s cold out here, Mulder and you’re freezing. Didn’t you notice?”

Indeed, Mulder was shivering and he felt cool when Scully touched him.

“No, I didn’t. Strange, isn’t it? I was thinking. I would’ve frozen to death if you hadn’t come. It was so nice and sunny today.”

“Temperatures rise and fall significantly up here from day to night. A warm day doesn’t necessarily mean an equally warm night. Especially when fall’s coming.”

“I miss you, Scully,” he held his breath.

“I’m right here Mulder,” Scully replied with a lump in her throat, knowing where this was going. He had tried to start this conversation in the café.

“I’m glad about that. No, I am happy, really happy. You don’t know what it means to me, having you by my side again. I just wished…”

“We’ll talk about it, Mulder. I promise. But please, you need to understand me, too. I’m not ready yet.”

“You’re not ready to tell me that I screwed up? That I ruined it all? That you had to leave because I pulled you back into my darkness? Why didn’t you back then? You just left. Or are you not ready to tell me that there won’t be an ‘us’ again and I should quit bothering?”

“Mulder stop. It wasn’t all your fault and I didn’t just leave or didn’t tell you. I did many times, you were just too busy to notice or listen. It was a process. But there are always two people in a relationship and we both made mistakes. I want you to stop chastising yourself. I agreed to work with you again because I knew you are getting better. We’re taking small steps in the right direction. I am not saying there is no ‘us’ ever again. But Mulder, I need time. Please!”

“You’re right. I’m sorry,” Mulder sighed, “We’ll talk in your time. When you’re ready,” he wasn’t happy with the outcome but he was satisfied that he made the first step and that despite Scully not wanting to talk about them, she had at least begun to.

“Come on inside. I’ll tug you in.”

“You think that’s the right thing to do right now?”

“If you don’t want it, I won’t do it of course.”

“Can we spoon? I’m really cold.”

“Maybe next time. Come on, we’ve got to get up early.”


	5. - Five -

The alarm went off two hours later. They packed and went back to the ranger station, where Karl had already prepared breakfast.

“Enjoy. Hope this helps you gain some strength for the hike.”

“The weather report’s good for today but we’re expecting rain during the night. We should try to get as far as possible as long as we can because we probably won’t move as quickly tomorrow in the soaked terrain. I’m expecting us to be in the target zone by early afternoon,” Robson instructed the agents as well as the ranger.

“You’ll radio in every three hours, letting me know you’re ok, right?”

“Yeah and I got the GPS on agents Mulder and Scully and myself as well.”

They finished their meals, geared up and began their hike on a well maintained trail. 

“The first couple of miles are easy. It’s steep sometimes but the trails are good and we should move along just fine. Later however, it’ll be more difficult to stay on the trail and also even finding it. We might have to look around a little more often. The route we’re taking is one of the more challenging in this park,” Robson explained.

“Both agent Scully and I are in top-shape,” Mulder grinned, “We’ll be fine.”

xxxx

After three hours of easy hiking, Robson suggested a break.

“We’ll soon reach the diversion where we leave this trail and begin our ascent to Poot Peak. We’re taking the North route, which is shorter but harder to hike. Unless you’re uncomfortable with this – then we’ll take the South route instead,” Robson questioningly eyed Scully.

“I don’t mind taking the harder route if it gets us to our destination quicker. But if shorter and harder means that we’ll have to slow down significantly and the advantage is not saving time but distance only, I’d prefer the South route.” 

“Well, it is a small detour but not necessarily longer with regards to time. Ok, then we’ll take the South route. I’ll just need to inform Karl about our change in plans so he can keep track of where we are.”

“Not up for an adventurous climb, Scully?”

“I don’t really need that anymore, Mulder. I have no problem admitting that I’d prefer the easier way. Would you’ve rather climbed? Honest truth!”

“Hell, no,” Mulder grinned.

They settled near a small creek and helped themselves to their rations. It was a beautiful day, she sun was shining through the tree canopies and the birds were singing. The air was still fresh and smelled of spruce. A perfect day for a hike.

Mulder used the opportunity to ask more questions.

“Before the recent events have there ever been other deaths with the same characteristics?”

“You mean like people being torn apart?”

Mulder nodded.

“As a matter of fact, there have. Like I said, I grew up with the story about a monster in the woods and that story originated probably in the 80s, when a family of four were found dead out here. Torn to shreds. People said it was a monster, but the police called it bear attack.”

“You never believed the police?”

“Well, I was a child. Of course I rather believed the story my parents told me about the monster. They probably only did that to keep me out of the woods but it stuck with me ever since. I would say it initially opened my mind for extreme possibilities.”

Mulder now grinned.

“I feel ya.”

“I must add though, that unfortunately most of the time man turns out to be the only monster. So, what can I say? I don’t know what it is. Or whether a bear or a monster or a man killed that family back then and those hikers today. I want to believe that there’s something beyond what we know but I am not naïve enough to believe without hard evidence. And that’s why you guys are here, right?”

“That’s right, sergeant. Agent Mulder also believes in extreme possibilities, but we base our investigation on scientific proof. Although inconclusive as for the cause of deaths, the autopsy reports showed no indication of unnaturalness. I honestly think what we’re dealing with here is – like you said – either an animal or a human. Whatever it is, we will find out.”

“I’m not saying it’s a monster or a demon per se,” Mulder said, now defensively, “I just keep an open mind.”

“We’ll see about that,” Scully answered more to herself but Mulder heard her.

They fell silent and after a few moments, Mulder spoke again.

“Scully, can I talk to you for a second? In private?”

“Uh, I’ll radio Karl our position and inform him that we’re taking the South trail,” Robson excused himself and quickly left for the creek.

“What is it, Mulder?”

“Why are we here?”

“What do you mean? You suggested to investigate this case.”

“I suggested it because I believe something is going on here. Something beyond just an animal attack. You encouraged me to pursue the case. Now you’re basically telling me, you’re doubting my expertise. I don’t understand why you didn’t talk me out of it back in DC if you believe there’s nothing for us to find here.”

“Mulder, I told you in DC that I didn’t believe in the Kushtaka demon not that I think here’s nothing for us to do. I’m just trying to protect you from losing yourself in a theory that has no scientific basis.”

“Yeah, I heard your ‘we base our investigation on scientific proof.‘ Almost none of my theories ever have a scientific basis or can be scientifically explained, Scully and yet how often have I been right? You’re simply looking forward to proving me wrong, aren’t you? Like old times.”

“Excuse me?”

“You get off on proving me wrong!” Mulder grew agitated.

“Fox, all I said was that we needed scientific proof. I’m not trying to prove you wrong, I’m trying to solve a case with you,” Scully tried to soothe.

“’Fox’ is it now? Fox is back to hunting monsters, time to pull the scientist card.”

“There is no point in talking to you when you don’t want to listen to what I actually have to say. You’re twisting the facts, so they fit in your truth. I’m not fucking trying to prove you wrong and I don’t get off on it, damned!” Scully was losing her patience and her voice took on a dangerous tone. “We have a case right now, Mulder and we’ll solve it. We’ll keep it professional and once we got back, we’ll talk about us and about the job. You understand? We’ll do that once we got back.”

“Okay, whatever.” Mulder simply replied and turned to look for Robson.

Scully let out the breath, she hadn’t realized she was holding. She’d known it would be hard working with Mulder again, but this was a walk on the edge.


	6. - Six -

Robson did well in not asking what was bothering the two agents, and the next leg of their hike almost went in complete silence.

Not that the hike itself did anything to start or maintain a conversation. All of them were focusing on their steps to not trip or fall. If Robson had said this was the easier route, so what was the difficult route like?

They had taken another break at some point but even then Mulder didn’t talk to Scully again, he was sulking. Scully found the whole situation absurd but she left him alone.

xxxx

The terrain elevated and at some point the woods cleared to reward them with a spectacular view of Poot Peak.

“It’s almost five pm now and we will camp here. The sun sets in about two hours which gives us plenty of time to put up the tents, gather firewood and cook a little something for dinner,” Robson explained. “You got pop-up tents, so just throw them and they’ll, well, pop-up. Tomorrow, I’ll help ya bag them again. They can be bitchy.”

‘Like real people’ Scully thought.

Still not talking much, they set up their camp.

“I’ll go and get firewood,” Mulder announced.

“Ok but be careful , don’t go too far and make plenty of noise – maybe sing – to keep the bears away.”

“If I started singing, I’d scare off all wildlife in these woods forever… But thanks for the advice. I’ll just talk to myself really loud instead,” Mulder replied and took off.

“Everything ok with you guys?” Robson asked when they were alone, “You appear tense.”

“Agent Mulder and I have only been re-assigned to one another a couple of weeks ago. We used to be partners for many years. We need time to get used to each other again and to trust each other.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t want to be intrusive. I overheard some of your argument and it didn’t really seem case-related.”

“I’m sorry for appearing unprofessional earlier. It won’t happen again,” Scully sighed.

“You know in the woods, with pretty much nothing but yourself, you start thinking. And this can sometimes erupt in a fight if you’re with other people. Me, I never feel more alive than when I’m out here. I can clear my head, think things over, come up with new ideas and stuff. But the two of you obviously carry a lot of personal baggage, too.”

“You’re right. We’ve had some personal issues in the past and still have. I anticipated that when I took the assignment but I didn’t think we’d actually fight on the job. Agent Mulder has always been very passionate and I don’t know why he reacted that way. He knows me and he knows I don’t always agree with him. This fight wasn’t about the case, it was about us. He just used it to address what really bothers him.”

“Which is not Kushtaka.”

“Well, of course he wants to solve the case, no doubt, but this is about other demons. Demons I was hoping to never see again.”

Robson nodded thoughtfully “I know what you’re talking about. They come in all shapes.”

Cracking sounds came from the scrub as Mulder broke through with arms full of firewood.

“Pissed off some squirrels but nothing more than that. No bears in the area.” He had regained his composure.

“Good to hear. Anyway, just so you know, tonight we’ll hang our gear up in that tree over there, out of reach for the wildlife. We don’t want our sleep to be interrupted by curious animals, right?”

“I want to keep watch. Just in case. Don’t need much sleep, so maybe I can lay down for a bit while you’re still up and when you want to sleep, you’ll wake me. We can also keep the fire burning like that.”

“We can take shifts, Mulder.”

“No, it’s ok really. I volunteer.”

Scully swallowed her reply and watched Robson start the fire.

Once it burned, he rummaged through his backpack.

“Alright guys, we got Chicken Teriyaki, Beef Stroganoff or Lasagna,” he held up packages of freeze dried meals, “what do you want for dinner?”

“Chicken sounds good,” Scully answered and Mulder grunted his approval.

‘Cooking’ in the bush actually just meant boiling water and pouring it into the aluminum packages but all three of them enjoyed the warmth that spread through their bellies on the first bite. The meal didn’t taste crappy either, in fact, it was surprisingly good.

After dinner, they stored away their gear like Robson had ordered and sat around the campfire to once again study the map.

“We’re here now,” Robson pointed on the map. “The trail will soon end and merge with the Moose Valley trail. From there it’s only a couple of miles to where we found the first body. We should more carefully watch our surroundings.”

“Ok. Well, I’ll catch some z’s. You let me know when you go to bed. Have a good night,” Mulder abruptly got up and headed for his tent.

“What…? Uh, nevermind. I’ll put up a rain tarp for him, just in case,” Robson said, looking surprised after Mulder’s overhasty exit. “The clouds don’t look good.”

“Can I help?”

“Yeah, sure if you like. Thanks!”

Scully and Robson attached the tarp between two trees before settling at the campfire again. Robson spoke quietly.

“You know, Agent Scully, when I was younger, I was an addict. I mean, I didn’t just smoke pot. I was worse. My friends turned on me. My family cast me away after I stole my mom’s jewelry to buy a fix. I lived in the streets and was a mess. Then I met this boy, my age, he came by where I begged for money almost every day. Instead of giving me what I begged for – knowing I wouldn’t use the money for food but for another fix – he dropped sandwiches or burgers. I told him to fuck off, that I didn’t need his food but he kept coming. Once I threw it back at him, he didn’t say anything. He came for weeks. We never talked much but he became my friend, sort of. Then one day, he didn’t show up, the next day neither and I began to realize that I missed him. He was my constant. And when he was gone, I realized that I didn’t want him to see me like that anymore. It’s crazy, I know, but he touched something deep inside of me and when that was gone, it was like the much needed kick in the ass. I got up and got help. There was a shelter and they had this program. I enrolled and went to their meetings regularly. I got clean. It was a terrible time but I got back on track. The shelter staff found me a job at a burger joint and with the wage I could soon pay the rent for a small apartment. One day, a guest had left her purse and I was asked to bring it over to the police station which I did. I waited in the hallway to be called upon and looked around. There were pictures on the wall of officers killed on duty. His name was Steve Yester. He was killed on the day he last visited me. Shot by a drug addict in a drug deal gone wrong. His colleagues told me. Then and there I decided to become a cop which wasn’t easy, given my background, but I made it and and I never regretted it, thanks to Steve who didn’t want to give up on me. I don’t know what you and Agent Mulder went through, but I see that he needs you and he relies on you. Please just don’t give up on him.”

“I won’t ,” Scully said softly, “even if he fights me and right now thinks he can’t trust me. I’ll always have his back.”

“But you’re shutting him out, too.”

“It’s a difficult situation for both of us. I need to sort out my own feelings but he keeps pushing me.”

“He’s afraid and wants to do the right thing. I’ve only known you for little over a day but you guys have a special bond. I suppose you were more than just partners and friends? You don’t need to answer. Agent Mulder does everything he can to fix what’s broken. But you know, it’s hard to leave the bad habits behind.”

“One of his bad habits is that – even though I still AM his partner and his friend – he doesn’t trust me anymore and that’s a setback. He tries, I know that, but as soon as I say something that contradicts him, he’s on edge and wants to run. I’ve never been someone who simply agrees. He knows that, he’s always known that. The way he freaked over me this afternoon was unusual, even for him.”

“I think it’s because he doesn’t know where he’s at. You said you need to sort out your feelings. Are you talking to him at all? I’m guessing you don’t and he’s in limbo. He has to wait for you and doesn’t know the outcome. And when you disagreed with him today, or his theory respectively, he thought you’re turning on him as a person. Does that make sense at all or am I talking BS? I’m not good with this emotional stuff myself.”

“I guess I understand what you’re saying. It’s pretty fucked up,” Scully laughed a bitter laugh.

“Yeah but it’s something you can sort out. He’s still here and there is hope,” Robson affectionately patted her arm. “Come on, time to get to bed. I’ll wake Agent Mulder.”

Above, thunder rolled and the first drops of rain came down and Scully looked up concernedly.

“He won’t have a pleasant watch.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In loving memory of my friend Steve.


	7. - Seven -

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Birthday, DD!

It wasn’t pleasant. Wasn’t at all but Mulder didn’t mind. He was thinking. He had overreacted this afternoon, he knew it the second the words were out of his mouth, but he said it to make her angry, to make her talk to him. In the end, he was the one who turned around and left. He was afraid. Afraid to disappoint her. Afraid to lose her. He was afraid of what she thought of him. But he needed her so much. She was why he was getting better. He WAS getting better, wasn’t he? Well, probably not according to her and after what he pulled off today. Yeah, it was childish, he also knew that. He understood she needed time but didn’t she see that it was killing him? His rational self knew that he wouldn’t get far if he pushed her, but the more she made him wait, the angrier he got. And now she was mad at him. He felt helpless and didn’t know what to do.

The rain fell even heavier now and that was all he could hear. Even the nocturnal animals had taken shelter. Mulder looked at his watch, it was 1.24 am.

A loud bursting sound suddenly scared him and he looked around hectically, pointing his flashlight towards the trees which were obscured by the rainfall.

Robson and Scully heard it too, the opening of their tent’s zippers told him.

“What was that,” Scully asked, still confused from sleep. They met underneath the tarp.

“I don’t know. Sounded like a falling tree. It was too loud for just a branch,” Mulder replied still looking around.

“Better check it out. I’m going, you guys stay put,” Robson ordered.

He disappeared into his tent and reappeared a few minutes later dressed with waterproof clothes and a rain poncho.

“Which way did the sound come? To me it was like it came from that direction,” he pointed to where he thought.

“I concur,” Mulder agreed.

“Yes, me too,” Scully said.

“Alright. I’ll be back in about 10 minutes, you don’t move.”

Robson marched off and Mulder and Scully stood in awkward silence, staring after him.

“I think it was nothing,” Mulder noted, “but I’m a little concerned.”

“Me too. Although I honestly think it was just a tree.”

They fell silent again and kept watching the impenetrable darkness, hoping for Robson to return soon.

Ten minutes passed, then fifteen.

“That’s it. I’m going after him,” Mulder announced and prepared to follow the sergeant.

“We should go together. We can’t risk losing each other.”

“Did Robson take the radio? If he didn’t, we could radio Karl and let him know what’s happening.”

“Let me check his tent.”

Scully opened Robson’s tent and searched for the device, while Mulder simply yelled the officer’s name into the darkness.

“I can’t find the thing,” Scully explained and crawled back out of the tent when bushwhacking noises quickly approached them.

Both agents drew their guns.


	8. - Eight -

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Birthday, GA!

“What’s going on,” Robson asked breathing heavily from his run back to the camp.

“You were overdue. We were worried and getting ready to go after you,” Mulder explained.

“Uh, sorry about that! I found the cause of the noise; like we guessed, it was an old Aspen that took a smaller one with it when it came down. No monster or demon luckily. The downside is that it fell on the trail. We’ll need to see tomorrow if that’s going to trouble us.”

“So much excitement for a tree,” Mulder mumbled. 

They said good night once again and separated to their tents. Mulder sat back down at the fire.

The rest of the night passed without further incidents.

xxxx

When the sun rose, Robson was up. The heavy rain had stopped, it drizzled though.

Mulder had already made coffee – instant, that was – on the small camping stove and added more wood to the fire. He handed Robson a cup.

“Weather’s a little worse than predicted. We’ll have to be very careful today.”

“Under these circumstances, how long will it take for us to get to the target area?”

“I predicted afternoon but might be early evening now. Like I said, depends on the trail. The coffee’s good. Thanks!”

“Did anybody mention coffee? Good morning gentlemen!”

“Good morning, Agent Scully. Did you sleep well?”

“Mornin’ Scully.”

“‘Well’ is not how I slept, but I slept and the coffee will do the rest,” Scully managed a smile.

Mulder tried not to gaze. He loved early-morning-rumpled-Scully, so he focused on poking the fire with a stick. He was very busy poking. It required all his attention.

“I hope that we can go round the trees and continue on this trail. It would be a shame if we had to go back all the way and take the North route,” Robson explained.

“Why do you think we can’t go round the fallen trees?”

“From what I could see last night, they came down where the trail’s cut into the rocks. The left side drops off into the canyon and on the right, you gotta climb. If we don’t want to turn around, we’ll have to leave the trail and walk a couple of miles through the forest until we can step on it again. The terrain won’t allow it any other way.”

“We can’t go back. We’d lose another day, maybe two,” Mulder replied.

“Yes we would but it’s safer than trampling through the woods,” Scully objected.

“We don’t know if the other track is any better than this one,” Mulder countered. “I don’t want to go back only to find that that trail’s blocked as well.”

“Guys,” Robson intervened and held up his hands, “let us check out the trail first before we get into a fight, ok?”

“Yeah. Sorry,” Mulder apologized also in the direction of Scully.

“You’re right, sergeant Robson. I’m sorry, too.”

“We’ll leave our stuff here so we don’t have to carry it around. Whatever we decide to do, we can pack-up later. We should eat a bit though, before we head on. It’s important to keep our strength out here.”

Robson handed them some food bars for breakfast and afterwards, the three of them went to check on the trail’s condition.

xxxx

“Impassable.” Mulder noted.

“So what now?” Scully sighed.

“Well, like I said earlier. We can either go back – which doesn’t seem to be an option for Agent Mulder – or we’ll hike through the bush. Here, let me show you on the map. This is where we are, on the rim of the canyon. The trail actually leads through that canyon and is partially cut into the rocks like here. I don’t have the gear to do some serious climbing, so we need to go all the way to where the trail ascends again,” he showed the agents the map and the route he planned on taking.

“You sure we won’t get lost?” Scully asked to gain confidence.

“We got GPS and I also got an old fashioned compass. Yeah, I’m pretty sure we won’t get lost,” Robson smiled reassuringly.

“OK, then let’s do this,” Scully said looking over to Mulder who nodded coyly.

They returned to the camp and packed their tents and gear. Robson radioed Karl letting him know about the occurrences and their plan.

“You sure about that? Over.” Karl asked worriedly.

“Agent Mulder doesn’t want to go back and I think I can take us through the bush. Over.”

“I’m not doubting your skills, Jeff. I’m just not sure if it’s a wise idea, given what happened to the others. Over.”

“The others weren’t as armed as we are. And if we happen to run into whatever killed our hikers and put it down altogether, we can call this case closed. Honestly, I appreciate your concern, buddy but we’ll be fine. I’ll radio in once we’re back on the trail. Over and out.”

xxxx

When they left the trail, Scully had a feeling this wasn’t a good idea. She trusted Robson but something nagged at her. It was like in a predictable horror-movie where in the end, the characters ended up dead. Like the Blair Witch Project or something.

Without a trail, the hike was slower and they had to be careful not to slip on the wet and partially sloping ground. Roots, dead leafs and mud made it even more unpleasant and they zig-zagged their way through the bush.

After the first hour, their pants were covered in dirt and permeable to the ever present moisture. 

They could hear the rain was falling heavier again, but fortunately for now, the trees held up most of it. 

Mulder was annoyed.

“How much further is it?”

Robson, who’d been constantly checking his (waterproof) map and compass turned around and replied “I’m afraid we’re not there yet. It’s harder than I expected and by my calculation, we haven’t even made a third of the way.”

“Oh shut up!”

“I know. This isn’t how I expected it. It’s worse and I’m sorry. We can still go back if you like.”

“No, but we could take a break somewhere. I need to change my socks, they’re soaked.”

“What’s with your boots, Mulder? They’re supposed to be waterproof.”

“The manufacturer probably didn’t plan for them to be worn in the Alaskan bush,” Mulder replied grimly.

“What do you think, guys? Check out the rock face over there and what seems to be an overhang,” Robson pointed East. “We should look for shelter there!”

“It’s worth a try,” Mulder said and the group changed direction and marched towards the rocks, in prospect of finding a dry spot to take a break.

They neither noticed the shadow that was following them in some distance nor realized that they were moving even deeper into the unexplored wilderness.


	9. - Nine -

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little fluff.

After a while, they found a small cave. It just big enough for the three of them to crouch in, but at least it was dry and shielded them from the water that now again poured down mercilessly.

“Cozy,” Mulder joked while wringing out his socks. He reached into his backpack and cursed “Sonofabitch!”

“Let me guess,” Scully answered, “you’re gear is just as soaked as mine.”

“I’ll sue the FBI’s outfitter!”

“Your backpacks aren’t waterproof?” Robson asked like he couldn’t believe it.

“Obviously,” Mulder hissed.

“That sucks!”

“You don’t say!”

“We can’t go out there again until it stopped raining,” Scully interrupted.

“We also can’t stay cramped inside this cave like this all day,” Mulder added.

“We’ll put up our tents,” Robson suggested, “and outwait the rain.”

“Yeah, good idea and we’ll make a fire in here and boil some water for coffee,” Mulder seemed to like the idea.

“Alright then, let’s do this!” Scully got up, unhooked her tent from the backpack and threw it out where it assembled itself like magic. “What a convenient invention!”

The men did the same.

“I’m putting up the tarp as well. It should provide some more shelter. And I’ll pull my backpack with the food up in the trees to be safe – this one’s waterproof. You can leave your stuff in the cave to dry.”

They arranged their tents so that the openings were facing each other and they could talk if they needed. Not that anyone wanted to joyfully engage in a conversation right now.

Mulder and Scully had all too soon realized that their sleeping bags were wet, too and Mulder now seriously considered writing in his report that the outfitter was putting their lives in danger by providing insufficient clothing and gear and that they should be shot for punishment.

xxxx

Two hours later, nothing had changed. Well, nothing except for the mood of the three people, trapped in their tents.

Robson had informed Karl about their predicament, receiving pity and encouragement from over the air.

“Maybe we should ask Karl to evacuate us,” Scully suggested.

“There’s no way for a helicopter to get us out of here in this weather, I’m afraid. They’d have to wait until it got better.”

“Would it make any sense at all continue on today?” Mulder asked.

“It’s four pm. To be honest no, it doesn’t.”

“Then we’re stranded here. Damned,” Mulder grumbled.

“There’s nothing we can do about it, Mulder,” Scully soothed but she was just as frustrated as her partner.

“I understand your anger, Agent Mulder but this is just the weather up here. Changes from minute to minute. Sorry!”

“No need to apologize. I’m just a little disappointed.”

“Well, the fire’s almost out. I doubt I’ll find dry wood but we shouldn’t let it burn down entirely since it gets dark soon. I’ll go and see what I can find. You stay here!” Robson crawled out from his tent, threw on his rain poncho and smiled weakly at the agents.  
“I’ll see you later!”

xxxx

“Maybe coming here wasn’t such a good idea,” Mulder mused.

“Because of the rain? Or have you changed your mind about this case being an X-File?”

“Both and more. Listen Scully, I want to apologize to you…”

“Mulder, it’s ok…”

“No it’s not. I know it. You know it. I overstepped the line and I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be hostile, once I started, I couldn’t stop. I wanted to get a reaction from you, an emotion. I trust you, Scully, please believe me.”

“Are you sure about that, Mulder? You say it and I believe you want believe it, too but I want you to question yourself if it’s true. Because if you don’t trust me, we have lost our foundation and there will be no way for us to go on together or starting again.”

Mulder nodded quietly.

“You’re nodding because you trust me or because you understand that without trust, there will be no ‘us’?”

“I’m nodding because I know it’s my fault.”

“Why do you always think it’s your fault?”

“Because most of the time, it is. You don’t want me to list the times, things happened to you or people we were close to because of me, do you?”

“Mulder I thought we were past this. You’re slipping back into old behavioral patterns.”

“My therapist wouldn’t be happy knowing about that, huh?”

“No and I’m neither. You need fight yourself out of this state of mind, otherwise your whole therapy was for nothing. You had your depression under control Mulder. Don’t let it take you again.”

“It would be easier to fight it if I wasn’t alone, Scully,” Mulder choked and turned away from the tent’s opening.

Scully took heart and quickly crawled from her own tent into Mulder’s. She gently embraced him from behind, noticing he shook.

“Hey,” she whispered softly, “it’s ok. You’re not alone.”

He didn’t reply, he couldn’t, his tears were streaming freely now.

Scully held on to him, pulling him even closer and after a moment of weak reluctance, he let himself be leant against her and she laid them down.

“I wanted to be the big spoon,” he complained in tears.

Scully laughed in his hair “For once, let me be the big spoon.”

“You were the big spoon once before. In Antarctica, right after the spaceship broke through the ice, remember?”

“What spaceship?”

“You remember.”

“I want to be the big spoon. Don’t argue with me.”

“I’m not. It feels good. Feels familiar.”

“I like it, too.”

“What if Robson sees us like that?”

“If he does, we’ll tell him we were cold.”

“Hmm, I AM cold.”

“I’ll help you get warm!” Scully pushed a leg over Mulder and crawled even closer to him.

“Scully… I don’t think this is a good idea.”

“Why? Afraid to get caught?”

“No. Yes. Because of this situation. Because of us.”

“You think it’s inappropriate, but believe me, Mulder, I’m just acting as your doctor.” 

“In this case, I better follow the doctor’s orders.”

Scully held onto Mulder until she felt him relax.

“I miss you too, you know?” she softly said after a while.

“What do we do?”

“We’ll work it out like we always do, I guess. Mulder, I am really proud of you. I want you to know that.”

“At times I wasn’t sure if I could ever get back on my feet again,” Mulder answered quietly. “I was in a very dark place after you left – and I don’t mean this as an offense.”

“I know. But I had to make a decision and it was for my own sake. I couldn’t live like that anymore.”

“I see that and I understand it now. Back then, I couldn’t. Until Skinner kicked me in the ass,” Mulder chuckled.

“He’s a good man and a precious friend.”

“Yeah. I owe him.”

“We both do, Mulder. We both do!”


	10. - Ten -

Sergeant Robson had kept close to the rocks, looking for dry wood or anything useful. Up until now, he’d only found two branches that weren’t entirely wet but it wasn’t nearly enough to keep the fire going for a couple of hours. He had to keep looking.

Robson hoped that when he got back, the FBI agents hadn’t kicked each other’s heads in. The tension between them was almost unbearable.

The sad thing was that they both meant to do good but somehow, they kept talking on cross purposes. He hoped they would get their shit together, not just for the sake of solving this case but also for their own personal sake.

Robson looked around when something suddenly caught his eye. Movement.

‘Could be moose’ he thought but curiosity prevailed and he followed the shadow deeper into the woods.

Suddenly, the shadow disappeared and he realized he lost track of where he was when it was already too late.

‘Great’ he thought again but he wasn’t worried. He took out his compass and the map on which he had marked the spot where they camped.

“What the fuck?” he now asked aloud.

The needle spun around aimlessly.

Robson tapped on the compass a couple of times and then put it to the ground, trying to still it but it just kept spinning.

He took out the GPS to get the coordinates but the display only showed a jumble of figures.

“I don’t believe this!”

The sergeant looked around, as if expecting help to come around or at least the FBI, but he was alone.

What now? He only knew one answer.

“AGENT MULDER! AGENT SCULLY!” he repeatedly yelled from the top of his lungs but his screams were swallowed by the noise from the rain.

“Okay, okay, okay. Don’t panic,” he said to himself and remembered the radio. “You’ll radio Karl and ask him to get a track on you and he’ll tell you your position and you’ll feel like an idiot once you got back to the camp. Fucking rookie mistake following something head over heels into the fucking bush without remembering where you fucking came from,” he cursed.

Robson felt for the radio. Felt again. Took off his jacket, searched it. Checked his other pockets. The radio wasn’t there.

“This is ridiculous. You SOB left it at the camp,” he scolded himself.

He looked around again. It was getting dark.

“I’ll have to spend the night here. If I move on and go even further in the wrong direction, I might end up lost entirely.”

Robson sat down and leaned against a tree. He decided to use the two branches to make a small fire for himself – at least he had matches.

In the twilight, the policeman couldn’t see what was silently approaching until it was too late. 

He had time to draw his gun but not enough to fire. 

His arm holding the gun and his head smashed against the tree. 

He lost consciousness immediately.


	11. - Eleven -

“Something’s wrong. Something’s very, very wrong,” Mulder said, wandering around their camp in the rain.

“I agree. But what should we do? It’s already getting dark again,” Scully sighed and looked up.

“ROBSON! CAN YOU HEAR ME?” Mulder shouted and then paused to wait for an answer, “ROBSON!”

There was nothing. No distant shout back, no gunshot, no beacon, nothing. They were alone.

“Mulder, it’s no use. If he could hear us, he’d probably have found a way to draw our attention towards him.”

“What if he’s injured? What if he tripped and hit his head? We need to go after him, Scully.”

“Which way, Mulder?”

“Well, he went that way,” Mulder pointed “and assuming he stayed close to the rockface, we should find him there somewhere. If we don’t, the rocks will lead us back to our camp AND we got the GPS. It’s worth a try, Scully. Just an hour and then we’ll head back, ok?”

“I honestly don’t think it’s a good idea to blindly hike around the forest but I also don’t have a better idea.”

“Then it’s agreed. Come on, dress up, we’ve got no time to waste.”

Slipping their still damp hiking-clothes and boots back on and stuffing one of their backpacks with flashlights, water, energy-bars and first aid kit, the agents prepared for departure.

Scully wrote a short note, in case Robson got back while they were gone, telling him where they went and when they left.

“Did he take the radio?”

“What is it with us and that thing?” Mulder sighed but crawled inside Robson’s tent. 

When he emerged a minute later, he held the device up in victory.

“Hallelujah! Karl, can you hear us? This is Agent Mulder speaking. Over.”

The radio emitted static noise then:

“Agent Mulder. This is Karl. Everything alright? Over.”

“I don’t know to be honest. We’re a bit off track and we lost sergeant Robson. Over.”

“What do you mean you lost him? Over.”

“Yeah. He told you we had to leave the trail, right? We’re approximately 90 minutes away from it and sought shelter at a rock-face. He left to get firewood a couple of hours ago and hasn’t returned yet. Over.”

“That doesn’t sound good. Hang on a sec and let me check if I can track his and your GPS. Over.”

“Just hurry a bit, please. We were about to head out to look for him and the rain and darkness won’t make it any easier. Over.”

The radio fell silent.

“Karl? You still there? Over.”

“I’m here Agent Mulder. I got some good and some bad news. Over.”

“What is it now?”

“I got a track of your and Agent Scully’s GPS but not of Jeff’s. Over.”

“How that? Over.”

“I don’t know, Agent Mulder. It just doesn’t appear. It either ran out of power or it’s switched off. Over.”

“OK, then we’re going after him, simply guessing the route he took. Over.”

“Be very careful, Agent Mulder, and get in touch with me as soon as you know anything – even if you don’t find him. I want to be sure you’re ok. Over.”

“Understood. My GPS’s battery works fine, I’m holding it in my hand right now and Agent Scully nods hers is fully charged, too. Wish us luck. Over and out.”

xxxx

They moved slowly, carefully looking around. They were lucky, in the soaked ground, Mulder and Scully could follow traces Robson had left – until they changed directions.

“Why did he suddenly make a turn?” Mulder asked astonished, his fingers trailing the outlines of Robson’s footprints before which he knelt.

“He must have spotted something, maybe a dry spot or an animal,” Scully guessed, “and followed it. It’s just too bad that the ground gets rockier here and we lose his tracks on it.”

“We still have his probable direction. We should move on just a little further.” Mulder got up again, stretched and looked around. “ROBSON!” he tried again, “SERGEANT ROBSON, CAN YOU HEAR ME?”

“Mulder it’s getting too dark to see. We must go back.”

“We can’t leave him out here, Scully.”

“I’m afraid we have to, Mulder,” Scully insisted.

Mulder, still turning this way and that way and shining his flashlight into the woods stopped, a desperate look on his face.

“He can’t be another one. He can’t. Scully, we need to find him.”

Scully knew he wasn’t just referring to Robson being another victim of whatever what was going on here but also of Mulder’s quest. What bothered him most was that Robson would fall into theat category of people something bad happened to, because they knew or worked with Mulder. His fault – as he would definitely put it.

She went over to him and, mimicking the moves she made back in the office, put her hands on his biceps to still him. It always did the trick and made him focus on her.

“We’ll head out first thing in the morning. Robson’s been out here many times before, he knows what to do. We have to assume he’s alright and just lost. Come on, let’s go back.”

Mulder nodded and let Scully guide him away by his hand.

A shadow followed close behind.


	12. - Twelve -

It was dark when they returned to their tents and they were completely wet again. Mulder shivered.

“We’ll be staying in one tent tonight, Mulder,” Scully said sternly. Her hand reached out to touch his temple and she frowned. “How do you feel?”

“Uh, a little cold maybe. But I’m soaking wet – just like you, so it doesn’t come as a surprise.”

“Do you have any dry clothes left in your backpack at all?”

“I guess shirts and boxers. My hiking pants are both wet, my boots as well. Not speaking of socks. My raincoat works fine though,” his teeth chattered.

“Take them off and put them in the cave. At least they won’t get any wetter in there. I suggest we sleep in Robson’s tent, it appears dryer and his sleeping bag is much better than ours.”

“You and me naked in just one sleeping bag?” Mulder waggled his eyebrows.

“You and me IN DRY UNDERWEAR in just one sleeping bag, Mulder. To preserve body heat. I guess finally, your long-time fantasy comes true.”

“Please just don’t sing again.”

“Strip, Mulder!” 

“Gosh you’re bossy. I’m an old man, you know. I’m not as quick as I used to be. My body aches and I am…”

“If you keep talking your fantasy will remain just that and you’ll sleep in your own, damp tent,” Scully had already begun to take her own clothes off and put them in the cave.

“Innuendos, Scully. Innuendos and false promises.”

Scully gave him a look and he hurried: “I’m coming, I’m coming!”

In their underwear (!), they crawled in Robson’s tent and into his sleeping bag. It was tight and they moved close together. Mulder snugged into her, craving her warmth.

“Much better,” he sighed but Scully worried about his body temperature. He was undercooled.

“Are you feeling ill?” she asked, again touching his forehead.

“Hmm, I’m already getting better.”

“I’m not joking. If you’re running a fever out here, we’re screwed.”

“I’m not feeling ill. I’m feeling very good at the moment.”

“Little Mulder seems to agree,” Scully giggled.

“Sorry. No. Not sorry.”

“You can’t get warm if your blood flows in one area of your body only.”

“I need to do some moving then...”

“NO. And, this is not our sleeping bag!”

“I’ll get mine if that’s all that bothers you.”

“Mulder, you need to rest. I want you to close your eyes and sleep.”

“Party pooper.”

“End of discussion,” Scully kissed him gently on the cheek.

“You leave me hanging. I’m not amused.”

“Night Mulder. Sweet dreams!”

“You’re an evil woman, G-Woman. Good night!” he gently kissed her back.

xxxx

Mulder awoke to the birds singing and Scully’s fingers playing with his hair.

“Morning,” he mumbled sleepily.

“Morning, Mulder,” Scully replied, already more vivid.

“You awake long?”

“A while. Didn’t want to wake you.”

“Slept like a baby.”

“I know and I’m glad about it. And also that the rain has stopped. How do you feel?”

“Good. I could stay like this forever, though,” he smiled.

“We should get going.”

“Yeah, I know,” Mulder untangled himself from Scully and the sleeping bag and opened the tent’s zipper. “The sky’s clear for a change. Almost too good to be true. Wait there, I’ll get our clothes.”

Mulder went to the cave to pick up their clothes and tossed Scully’s through the tent’s opening. He then dressed himself, pleased that his pants weren’t as wet as the night before. His socks and boots were damp but much dryer as well.

When he finished, he wanted to grab some food-bars for breakfast before they headed out and stopped dead.

“What the fuck?”

“What is it, Mulder?”

“Robson’s backpack’s gone.”

“Say again?”

“Robson’s backpack is gone. It hung up in the tree. It is gone now.”

“Look around, Mulder. Maybe it fell down,” Scully crawled out of the tent fully dressed.

“No. It’s not here. The rope’s gone, too.”

“Check the other tents. Maybe Robson came back last night and took it down.”

Mulder did as told but shook his head in negation when he returned.

“Are you sure it was in the tree? I mean, did you check the cave?” Scully asked.

“It was up there. I know it. Let me see about the cave,” and seconds later “Scully. We’re in trouble.”


	13. - Thirteen -

“You’re kidding, right? This is your sick revenge for me not wanting to do the naked pretzel with you last night, isn’t it?”

They stood before the empty cave.

“No, I’m afraid I’m not. I wonder why our clothes are still here.”

“Maybe a bear dragged the backpacks out and took them with it,” Scully mused. “Perhaps it wasn’t interested in wet clothes.”

“Or maybe whoever took the backpacks didn’t see them.”

“How so?”

“They were laid out on the ground to dry. If the guy only had a dim light, say for the purpose of not waking us, he might have overlooked them. Turn around, Scully, let me see something.”

Scully frowned but turned around before her partner.

“There. Take off your jacket again,” Mulder did the same and turned it around in his hands.

There were footprints on both of them.

“That doesn’t look like a bear to me, Scully. Unless the bear wears standard army boots.”

Scully inspected her and Mulder’s jacket carefully and then looked at him.

“What is going on here, Mulder?”

“Kushtaka.”

“In army boots?”

“The lore says ‘Kushtaka is said to lure hapless people to their doom, in particular those who are lost’. Does that remind you of someone?”

“Does the lore say anything about army boots?” Scully repeated.

“No it says it’s a shapeshifter. A thing between a man and an otter. A MAN, Scully!”

“Not again.”

“It would make perfect sense! He, uh, IT felled the trees, it made us take the detour, it separated us from Robson, now it took our gear and leaves us lost and at its mercy.”

“Beavers fell trees, Mulder. Lontra canadensis is not known to do that.”

“Maybe he did in the shape of man.”

“The storm fell the Aspen and that again took the other one with it. Well, in the end this doesn’t help us find Robson and this should still be our priority.”

“You’re right. We should head out to find him. I suggest though that we take our tents and the rest of what’s left of our gear with us.”

“I agree. Mulder?”

“Yeah?”

“Have you seen the radio?”

xxxx

Having spent another half hour or so looking for ‘that damn thing’ - Mulder kept constantly swearing – and finding nothing, the agents finally decided to wrap up without it and follow Robson’s tracks.

They knew it wasn’t their smartest idea but in accordance with the Marine’s motto, they would leave ‘no man behind’. They had no other choice.

“Remember what Officer Fazekas did in Florida? When we were after the Mothmen? She left pebbles along the way, so she could find her way back. We should do the same, Scully.”

“I remember that. Unfortunately, in the end it didn’t help us at all. It was like Hansel and Gretel and the breadcrumbs. I just hope we don’t run into the crazy witch.”

“A witch is neither a demon nor a shapeshifter, Scully. I think we can rule this one out.”

“Comforting.”

xxxx

A little while later, they came back to where Robson had taken the unexpected turn.

“Scully, I got my pocket-knife. What I’m going to do is carve X’s into the tree-barks. They should help us find our way back. What do you think?”

“I think that’s a pretty good idea, Mulder. Even if somebody were around here to make our lives miserable and tore off the bark, we’d still see the fresh cut somehow. I think it could work.”

So that’s what they did.

Every two yards or so, Mulder carved an X well visible into the tree trunks, always checking if the previous one was visible from the current one. It should be foolproof, he thought.

They moved slowly and carefully, not being exactly sure if they were still on Robson’s tracks until Scully stopped.

“Mulder look at this. The ground over here is scuffed and check this out,” she now crouched beside a tree, “there’s blood.”

“Can you tell if it’s human? Maybe it was just an animal that scraped against it.”

“No, there’s no way I can tell if it’s human. Not out here without equipment. Can you mark this tree so we find it again and we look around for tracks?”

“Sure.”

They drew circles around the tree, each circle a little further away. This way they made sure they wouldn’t miss a thing.

“Scully. Over here.”

“What have you got?”

“Not sure, but with some imagination you might think this is a path, don’t you?”

“Could be a deer pass. I don’t know Mulder, I have to admit I’m feeling a bit lost out here. The more time we’re spending in these woods, the more I realize that I am so dependent on civilization and its technical advances that I seem to have lost touch to the most basic environment. I’m literally overwhelmed by all this,” Scully admitted unhappily.

But now it was Mulder’s turn to comfort. He gently put his arms around her, pulled her close and rested his head on hers. She was so small. She fit perfectly into him. He closed his eyes and granted himself this moment of intimacy. He had no idea where this was going and he was sure neither did Scully, but right now, deep in the wilderness, all he cared about was that she was with him and allowed him to hold her.

Reluctantly, Scully broke the embrace.

“Thanks, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize. I’m here to help and hug,” Mulder smiled. “Now what do you say? It’s our best lead and as far as I can see it, the only potential trace we’ve got. We’ll follow it for a little while and if it happens to be a deer pass only, we’ll go back.”

“We’re in deep shit already,” Scully sighed, “so why not a little deeper.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mulder's quoting from this source: http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2015/04/the-mystery-of-the-alaska-triangle/


	14. - Fourteen -

Mulder and Scully followed the small path that led into the brush. The trees were mostly spruce now again and did little to prevent the agents being extradited to the weather.

Thunder rolled in the distance.

“Our next case will be in California or somewhere else nice and warm. Why is there never an X-File waiting for us in Hawaii,” Mulder mumbled and coughed.

“Mulder wait a second,” Scully, who was walking behind him, asked and he turned around. He was pale and his lips were slightly blue.

“You were lying telling me you did better,” Scully said accusingly.

“I was doing better this morning. Honestly. No biggie, Scully. Once we found Robson and got the hell out of here, I’m going to take a nice, long bath, sleep for 12 hours, have some tea and will be back on track in no time. It’s just a cold.”

As if to prove him wrong, he was shaken by more coughs and Scully was alarmed.

“To me, it sounds like you’re developing pneumonia.”

“Don’t exaggerate, Dr. Scully. I’m fine!”

“That’s my line. For now, I believe you but I keep a close look at you and if you appear to be weakening, I’m calling this off and we’re going back, you hear me?”

“Yes, Ma’am!”

The followed the path for another mile, constantly talking about this and that or – if not talking – humming or whistling, to draw attention to themselves so that bears would hear them and turn away. But bears weren’t their biggest problem.

“You know, we got nothing to eat and no water. I’m beginning to feel really hungry,” Mulder mentioned.

“Water shouldn’t be the problem,” Scully replied watching the ever pouring rain, “but yeah, I’m hungry, too.”

“I now regret not paying closer attention to ‘Man vs Wild’. I’m pretty sure there are some worms or bugs in the ground we could eat.”

“Maybe we won’t need that. Check this out, there are tracks ahead.”

A couple of yards away the ground turned from mostly rocky to softer and muddier again and footprints became visible.

“You’re right, looks like standard army boots.”

“The thief?”

“Could be. It seems most likely at this point. We should proceed with caution.”

The agents drew their guns, which they wisely had stored in the tent, and slowly moved on. At some point, the path grew wider and looked more like a small logging road. There were tire-tracks in the mud.

“Interesting,” Mulder noted quietly and Scully nodded in agreement.

“You know what I think, Mulder?” Scully whispered, “I think that we’re onto something like illegal logging or poaching. We’ve been robbed and Robson taken so we would have to go back and leave them alone.”

“Still doesn’t explain where Robson is or why those hikers had to die the way they did,” Mulder demurred.

“There certainly is a logical explanation. As for Robson: Maybe they watched us all along. Maybe even since we arrived in Homer. They couldn’t just kill us like the others, because then there’d be even more people, so they took Robson instead to force us to turn around. I could imagine he’ll be returned or found as soon as we’re out of here.”

“And those loggers or poachers killed the hikers? Why would they? They must have known that there would be a search and rescue and the bodies be found eventually and that that would draw attention to this part of the woods – which they most likely wanted to avoid. And not to mention how far off the hiking trail we are. We wouldn’t have found this road if we didn’t get lost. Those hikers didn’t really have a reason to leave the trail as well. You saw it, Scully. We wouldn’t have had to leave it if it wasn’t for the trees. Those loggers slash poachers were safe from being discovered. I share your view that they didn’t want to kill us and simply scare us off by taking our gear and kidnapping Robson. But I don’t think they killed the hikers. I do in fact believe that these killings are most inconvenient for them.”

“Are you suggesting Kushtaka foiled their plans? Because, what I’m hearing from you Mulder is, that we have seven dead hikers, a missing police officer and obviously another party which would have great interest in being left alone, ergo a motif, but you still believe in a monster or a demon as prime suspect.

“Why kill them, Scully? And remember, we’ve never made it to where they actually had gone missing. What if…”

“Mulder, no.”

“WHAT IF Kushtaka purposely felled those trees in order to get us on track of those people and off its own?”

Scully fiercely shook her head and Mulder sighed in frustration. He spun around, arms outstretched.

“Then why all this, Scully?”

Scully wasn’t sure if he really only referred to the case so she kept quiet and let him go on.

“This isn’t just a coincidence. I think Kushtaka is using us to get rid of the perpetrators.”

“An intelligent monster?” she questioned.

“I… I don’t know what else to say to convince you. Yeah, call it an intelligent monster,” Mulder said defeated.

“If it really were intelligent, it should know that killing hikers isn’t the best way to keep people off its tail.”

“Okay. Whatever. It’s neither a monster, nor a demon. Forget I ever mentioned it. I’m sorry, Scully. Sorry to have dragged you out here, sorry for getting lost, sorry for the rain, sorry for wanting to be with you, sorry for not giving up on us.”

“You’re being childish and overly melodramatic.”

“Childish? Is that why you’re treating me like a child? Whatever I say just comes from my childish imagination and you need to prove me wrong to feel like the adult?” Mulder asked angrily.

“I don’t like where this is going, Mulder and I am asking you to calm down.”

“Are you my mother now?”

“Alright this is it. Stop right now or…”

“Or what, Scully?” Mulder interrupted. “You’ll leave for good? You’ll tell Skinner to let me go? You’ll speak with my shrink and send me to the nuthouse? What Scully?”

Scully couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. She turned from Mulder and walked away.

“Fuck. Scully don’t go, please,” Mulder shouted and ran after her. “Please don’t leave. Fuck.” He held her back by her shoulders and she stopped but didn’t turn. “Please. That was stupid. Shit. I don’t know what came over me. Scully, look at me. Please, look at me,” he begged and Scully let him turn her around. She didn’t look him in the eyes though, just stared at his chest.

“I don’t know why I said these things, Scully. I’m so scared to lose it all again. I can’t lose it again, Scully. I can’t lose you again. I want to make it right. I want to be the person you want me to be. I want to be good for you, not cause you trouble. I’m constantly fighting my own demons and sometimes it tires me and it frustrates me and I just want to give in. And then I think of you and what Skinner said that I hold it in my hands and I don’t want to throw it away and I get up every morning and I do my routine and get my shit together all hoping that it’ll pay and that you come back to me and I won’t screw it up again and yet I’m screwing up again... I’ll accept if you quit afterwards. I just don’t know if I can go on without you,” his voice was barely a whisper now.

Finally, Scully looked up and raised her hands to cup his face, stroking his stubble with her thumbs, a sad smile on her face.

“We’re one odd couple, aren’t we?” 

Mulder let out something that sounded like a hysterical giggle.

“Yeah. But not as odd as Mimi Rogers and Tom Cruise were back in the 80s.”

Scully laughed. “Cursed with photographic memory.Yeah not like those two.”

“I’m deeply sorry, Scully. Please believe me.”

“I accept your apology, Mulder. Fortunately, I know you and know where to file those outbursts of yours. I think, though that we should talk to someone. Together. There are some issues between us that need to be discussed and I’d rather do it with somebody experienced in that field.”

“Couples therapy.”

“Yes. I think it would do us both good.”

“I’m willing to try.”

“Thank you, Mulder!” Scully tiptoed and kissed him on the lips. It took all of Mulder’s self-control not to feverishly kiss back. He simply accepted.

xxxx

They quietly followed the road, but avoided walking directly on it. It went downhill and from their position, they could see a body of water glistering in the distance.

Mulder wiped his eyes; the rain was obscuring the view. 

“Is there a structure by that pond down there? A cabin?” he asked.

Scully caught up on him and followed his line of vision.

“Yeah. Actually I think I see two buildings. One seems to be a cabin and there’s another one a little further to the right. The one you’re talking about. We should sneak down there and check it out.”

Mulder agreed and they went deeper into the forest again in order to approach the buildings unobserved.


	15. - Fifteen -

On their way down, the agents had to stop as Mulder’s coughs turned worse.

“We’re taking a break,” Scully ordered and they hunkered down by a tree that provided shelter from the rain. “I want you to be honest with me: Do you feel nauseous? Are you in pain?” She felt his pulse on his neck. It was racing.

“I’m a little out of breath, I admit and I’m very cold. My chest hurts.”

Scully felt his forehead but she couldn’t make out if it was sweaty or just wet from the rain, so she opened his jacked and reached under his shirt. He was hot but he shivered.

“You’ve got a fever and symptoms of pneumonia, just as I feared. We need to get you out of here.”

“Maybe there’s a radio in the cabin. Let’s just check it out, ok? If it’s abandoned, it’ll provide shelter. If the bad guys are in, we overwhelm them and save the day,” he grimaced and coughed again. Longer this time and more violently. His whole body shook and Scully could see that he was degenerating quickly. She became very concerned.

“How about this: I’ll check out the cabin and when it’s safe, I’ll pick you up. I doubt you’re in any condition to run or fight.”

“It’s too dangerous, Scully. I don’t want to let you go on your own.”

“I’m a big girl, remember? If I see anything suspicious, I’ll come back. I’m not taking any risks, promise.”

“This is not good, Scully. It’s a bad idea.”

“Says the one who’s ditched me like a thousand times to chase aliens and conspirators.”

“And I’ve paid for it more than once.”

“Mulder, I’m just sneaking down to the cabin.”

“It’s a bad idea.”

“I should be back in thirty minutes. If I’m in trouble, I’ll fire my weapon and you’ll come after me. But you won’t do that unless you hear me shooting.”

Mulder nodded and they synchronized their watches. Scully checked her weapon, making sure it was loaded and ready. She was all set to go when she turned, kneeled down next to him and kissed him again. This time, Mulder kissed back – until he ran out of air and coughed again.

Scully smiled sadly. “Your pneumonia has a bad timing in so many ways…”

xxxx

Scully didn’t feel comfortable leaving Mulder behind but she was afraid that he would A) overexert himself and B) slow her down in case she needed to flee.

She wanted to check the second building by the water first. If it was a boat house and there was no boat or seaplane docked, she hoped to find the cabin empty, too.

Scully carefully snuck from tree to tree, permanently checking her surroundings. Time and weather were on her side, as the light slowly faded and the rain did the rest to almost make her invisible.

The agent reached the boathouse on the far side and found a small window. She looked through but the glass was dirty and she couldn’t really see inside.

Scully followed the wall to the water and found that the building was open to the lake side. She peeked around the corner to find the dock empty. Good.

Still that didn’t mean that the cabin was abandoned. She knew that, so she carefully continued her expedition in a broad circle until she reached the backside of the cabin.

While she had approached the building, she noticed that no smoke came from the chimney which she considered a good sign. Since the nights were rather chilly, she assumed that anybody staying here would light a fire for warmth.

The wall where she now stood had no windows and Scully turned around the corner, to the short side of the cabin.

There were two windows.

Scully took deep breaths while crouching below the first, calming herself and then slowly got up and quickly peaked inside. Ducked and waited. She hadn’t seen much and she needed to look again.

Repeating the motion she peaked once again.

To confirm her finding, she went to the second window and did the same. It was a bedroom and nobody was inside.

Assured, Scully moved onward to the cabin’s front. It had a porch and steps in the middle that lead to the door.

She didn’t want to take any chances, so she went back around the the cabin to the opposite short side. There were two other small structures: an outhouse, and what looked like a hobnailed carport, a couple of feet away. 

Deciding it was necessary to check those out too, she ran over and carefully opened the outhouse’s door, pointing the gun inside. Empty. She let out a breath.

She noticed the tire-tracks that led to or from the carport but didn’t see the vehicle they belonged to. Scully frowned, maybe the place had already been abandoned for the winter.

Moving quickly, she entered the porch and pulled and pushed the cabin’s front door. It didn’t move. 'Shit,' she thought. Only then did she notice the heavy padlock that secured the entrance.

Scully looked around again, still contented to find the whole area deserted. She took her time now to look through another window that sat beside the door.

xxxx

Mulder was restless and time passed by so slowly. It definitely felt longer than thirty minutes since Scully had left, but in reality it only had been ten. It was getting dark again.

Another coughing fit hit him and he exhaustedly leaned back on the tree. Scully was right, he was of no use like this. Wonderful.

He laughed bitterly. What he thought to be a good chance to reconnect with her had turned just into another nightmare. Well, except for the part that she was obviously willing to give them another chance. That’s what the couples therapy would be for, right? He hadn’t misunderstood her, had he? No, she was ready to talk things over with professional aide. His mind was in a blur, probably from his fever. No, that’s what she said. She would give them another chance. Being out here wasn’t a nightmare, it was salvation. If they survived.

The cracking of a branch startled him. He carefully looked around the tree and whispered “Scully?” but there was no answer and Mulder felt a rush of adrenaline.

He looked around the other side but not seeing anything. Maybe it was an animal. Please don’t let it be a bear.

Just when he relaxed again, a whizzing sound rang out and right above his head, a hunting arrow plunged into the tree.

Mulder shot up and sprinted away, while at the same time trying to figure out where the arrow had come from.

He may be in his fifties and suffering from pneumonia but he could still outrun horses if he needed to. At least for a little while. Unfortunately, his adrenaline induced energy was soon spent soon and he covered behind another big Aspen.

Mulder forced his breathing to normal (not an easy task) and carefully watched his surroundings. The woods were quiet except for the rain’s swooshing.

Another arrow suddenly drilled itself in the ground before him. They were still chasing him. Mulder pushed away from the tree and ran, trying to move in a circle so he wouldn’t get too far from Scully.

Scully. Panic filled his mind. Was she alright? Had she been discovered as well? He needed to get to her. If they hadn’t discovered her yet, it would be unwise to call out for her, so he drew his gun in full speed instead and blindly fired behind him, hoping Scully would hear it.

xxxx

Scully heard the shot just when she was about to return to Mulder and she immediately dove to cover.

The cabin’s interior had looked similar to the one she and Mulder had stayed in two nights prior. Same heavy wooden furniture, fireplace, small kitchen. Apparently, there also were two other rooms adjacent to the main one but from where she stood, she couldn’t see what kind of rooms they were.

In the distance, she could hear the sound of an engine and she knew they were royally screwed if they were dealing with the bad guys. Unfortunately, the gunshot only seemed to confirm her fear.

She watched the water and saw a boat approach in full speed, slowing down once it was close to the boathouse and finally disappearing inside.

Deciding she couldn’t stay anymore, she got up and sprinted back in the direction from which she’d come, hoping to find Mulder and take off with him.

xxxx

Those people were on a manhunt and they seemed to be enjoying themselves. Every time Mulder slowed down to catch his breath, an arrow would remind him to run again. He couldn’t do this much longer.

His chest was on fire, he could hardly get air in his lungs, his legs felt like lead. And then there was that root…

Mulder only saw it when it was already too late, he tripped, dropped his gun and crashed hard onto the forest soil, his face hitting the probably only single loose rock in the entire area and he saw stars.

He willed his arms to push himself up but they didn’t obey, so he rolled over onto his back instead, trying to breathe.

‘Get the fuck up’ he quietly screamed at himself and struggled to sit up but the sudden weight of a booted foot kept him down.

“Don’t move or the next arrow goes through your eye directly to your brain.”

Mulder froze.


	16. - Sixteen -

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long!

Mulder was not where she had left him and Scully took that as a good sign since an arrow was drilled into the bark of the tree just about the height where Mulder’s head had been.

Her relief soon faded though when she noticed that the tents and sleeping bags were still there. That could only mean he had run.

Scully found no indication which way he had fled and she could only roughly guess the direction from which the gunshot had come, so she imagined Mulder would run towards her and that meant she had to go back to the cabin.

She was halfway back down when she spotted him. 

He was walking, hands crossed behind his head, in front of a man in camouflage clothing, pointing a crossbow at his back.

Scully cautiously followed them but realized that from where she was, she would never get a clear shot at the man. She would have to wait for a better chance.

When the two reached the cabin, they were greeted by two other men who had arrived by boat. They exchanged words and then, Mulder was led into the cabin and the door closed.

xxxx

Once inside, Mulder was pushed forward and stumbled. His head was swimming.

“Get him over to the chair,” he heard a man say and almost momentarily, Mulder was grabbed by strong arms and sat onto a wooden chair.

His hands were bound behind his back with duct tape and his legs tied to the chair legs, leaving him immobile.

He wanted to speak but yet another coughing fit hit him and when it finally subsided, he lowered his head exhaustedly. 

“FBI, huh?” the man with the crossbow asked. “Found your badges in your backpacks. What are you doing out here?”

Still panting, Mulder replied “We’re investigating the murders of seven hikers.”

“I thought that case was closed? They’d died from animal attacks,” a second man replied.

“There were some unanswered questions, that’s why the local police asked the FBI for help,” Mulder explained only vaguely.

“Well that’s too bad for you, you know. You shouldn’t have come out here.”

“Why’s that?”

“’Cause you’ve gotten yourself and the other ones in some trouble,” one of the other men said.

“Where’s your little partner?”

“I don’t know. We got separated.“ Another cough.

“Well, I can’t leave her running around on her own out there, can I? Too dangerous for a little lady,” the man with the crossbow said, shouldered his weapon and to his partners “She was cute. I suppose we’ll have a good time with her before… you know?” And then he winked at Mulder and left.

“If you touch her or hurt her in any way, I will kill you with my bare hands,” Mulder hissed.

The man struck out and hit him hard with the back of his hand. 

“Shut up, Fed. You know for how long I haven’t had a girl? I will have some quality time tonight and I’ll make you watch.”

Furiously, Mulder tore at his bonds, rocking the chair until it flipped over and he crashed to the ground. He tried to free himself but a series of kicks to his ribs immediately stilled him.

“Stop it, you piece of shit, or you’ll miss the party when I knocked you out for good.”

“I’ll kill you. I swear, I’ll kill you, you son of a bitch,” Mulder screamed with all he had left.

“That’s it. I’ll wake you for the fun part. Promise.” Another kick, this time to his head, and Mulder’s world turned black.

xxxx

Scully lay in a hollow, watching the man that had captured Mulder reappear from the cabin. Two were still inside and she didn’t know how heavily armed they were. 

She could take the shot right away but Scully feared that the others would harm Mulder in retaliation. Taking him out silently seemed to be the best option and for that, she would have to get close to and surprise him.

“Hey, Miss FBI” the man yelled in a singsong voice, “come out, come out wherever you are! It’s too dangerous out here for a lady. Don’t make me get you!”

Scully didn’t reply, just watched the man. It was already getting too dark to see clearly. She quickly had to come up with a plan. 

Much to her horror, the man put on a pair of night vision goggles. 

“Come on now. Your partner’s desperate to see you. He’s really worried about you!”

Still Scully didn’t move. She hoped that she was relatively safe from being seen as the hollow prevented her body heat from radiating and therefore avoiding becoming visible for night vision devices. But as long as the man didn’t move either, she was in a stalemate situation.

“You need a little encouragement, don’t you? Well, your partner isn’t doing very well right now. He’s obviously sick and he hit his head pretty bad. You should see him. If you don’t show yourself, we’ll make him suffer even more. You want that?”

No, she didn’t want that and she knew the man wasn’t lying. Mulder had a laceration on his forehead when they brought him in. Surrender wasn’t an option though.

The man began to move, scanning the area and constantly shouting out for her.

“Listen, you don’t want to be out here alone. Trust me, there’s something out there.”

‘If he starts with Kushtaka now, I’m going to shoot him where he stands’ Scully thought grimly.

When the man finally turned in the opposite direction, Scully quietly but determinedly got up from her hiding-place and snug away. 

After a couple of yards, the darkness had swallowed her and she would only know if the man had seen her if he got to her before she could get to him. And while the man safely moved with his night vision goggles, Scully’s only reference point was the light from inside the cabin that shone onto the porch.

She played a dangerous game.

xxxx

Sergeant Robson wasn’t dead but at the moment, he wasn’t sure if he should be thankful for that or angry that they hadn’t killed him.

They had knocked him out and dragged him away and now he didn’t know where he was.

The only thing he knew was that he was an idiot and that he should have never left the FBI agents alone and Robson feared that the perpetrators had gotten to them, too.

His prison was a hole, probably an old well, six by six feet wide and very, very deep. Robson couldn’t remember how he had gotten down there but he imagined, that it must have been through some kind of winch. 

For obvious reasons they didn’t seem to want him dead and he had water to add to that. So what did they want?

Of course he hadn’t sat around simply awaiting his fate. He tried to climb up (bad idea), he tried to loosen the bricks to dig his way out (desperate attempt), he had screamed himself hoarse but nobody ever came – not even to tell him to shut up.

Right now, he was at the end of his wits.

A sudden idea made him giggle. If the rain didn’t stop, the water would rise eventually and lift him up and out of this prison. 

He was good in math so he quickly calculated how long it would take for that to happen and then he giggled even more as it would take several weeks. No, he’d never get out of here if no one came to rescue him.

Out of sheer desperation and anger, he screamed again. And again and again, until his voice was completely gone. Then he leaned back and waited for death or whatever.


	17. - Seventeen -

Mulder grunted and slowly raised his head. He was in a sitting position again but still tied. He opened his eyes and spotted his capturers across the room at a table, eating.

“Hey sunshine. You’re back earlier than I thought,” the one who kicked him greeted cheerily.

Mulder looked around and relaxed once he found that Scully wasn’t with them.

“Your partner’s still out there, which isn’t a good idea at night but anyway, George will find her soon enough. He’s pretty good at that.”

“Can I have some water?”

“Only if you ask nicely and without using any bad words.”

“Can I have some water PLEASE?”

“Hell no,” the third man laughed hunching over his dinner.

“Well, we want to show our guest that we may be living in the bush but we’re still very hospitable, aren’t we, Danny?”

“Do what you want Troy,” Danny smacked and Troy filled a glass of water and went over to Mulder, holding the glass to his lips. 

Mulder drank carefully and then coughed, spitting water onto Troy.

“Hey watch out, Fed,” Troy yelled annoyed and backhanded Mulder again. “Jeez. I’m being polite here and you fucking spit on me. That’s what the government taught you to do in a hostage situation? Piss the one in charge off?”

“No,” Mulder replied, still recovering, “they taught me how to kick our sorry ass instead.”

Troy laughed and turned towards Danny.

“He’s got stamina, doesn’t he? But his manners disappoint me. We’ll teach him some.”

And with that, he turned once again and hit Mulder’s face with the glass. It shattered into pieces, cutting into his face. From the blow, the chair once again was knocked over and Mulder landed in the shards.

xxxx

Scully stared into the darkness, trying to make out movement.

She had circled the cabin and was about 500 feet away from its rear wall when she thought she heard screaming.

Her first thought was that it had come from Mulder inside the cabin but when she heard it again, Scully realized it came from somewhere in the forest.

She was torn between investigating and saving Mulder but the fact that she had no light to find her way through the bush simplified her decision.

First, she would get Mulder out of there and then, she’d find out who or what made the noise.

One step at a time. It was mandatory now to stay realistic and not to overestimate her own capabilities if she wanted to get out of this alive.

The man with the crossbow had stopped yelling for her a while ago and she suspected he was silently stalking her.

It creeped her out thinking that he might be watching her right now, knowing her every move and playing with her helplessness. Scully swallowed the panic that arose and focused on the surroundings again.

xxxx

Blood streamed down his face, he had some nasty cuts just below his right eye and from the impact, it began to swell but Mulder didn’t care. This was his plan and it had worked. 

As quickly as his bound hands would allow, he felt around until he found a shard and hid it in his sleeve. Neither Roy nor Danny noticed.

“I can’t believe how stupid you are,” Roy scolded.

“That’s why the FBI never gets shit done, you know? They don’t have the brightest bulbs working for them obviously,” Danny replied. “What do we do with him?”

“George said we can’t use the Feds, just the cop, but given the attitude this one shows, I think he might change his mind. Three’s better than one, you know? I’m tempted to use him first. Or maybe his partner and let him watch that as well.”

“What are you talking about?” Mulder asked sluggishly.

“You’ll find out soon enough. Let’s just say our pet needs a new toy.”

“Kushtaka?”

“What?”

“Kushtaka. You’ve summoned a demon and that demon needs to be fed and entertained, so it doesn’t turn on you. You somehow use it for your purposes and to keep it in check, you abduct people and let it hunt them. That’s what happened to the hikers, right? They were game.”

“Can you make him shut up, Roy? He talks too much.”

“Yeah, way too much,” Roy answered, tore off some more duct tape and covered Mulder’s mouth with it. “Sorry about the coughing. You’ll manage somehow.”

When Roy returned to the table, Mulder got to work with the shard.

xxxx

Scully squinted a couple of times but finally she was sure that she saw a dim greenish light moving slowly through the darkness. 

It was the light produced by the goggles – she had found her pursuer. Or maybe he had found her.

She didn’t move but for some reason, the man didn’t walk in her direction at all. He appeared to have targeted someone else.

The rain still produced the predominating sound so she could move almost unheard.

Scully followed the man and when he walked into a depression, she knew it was now or never.

From her vantage point slightly above him, she charged and jumped into the man’s back.

The two of them hit the ground hard, Scully landing on top of the man, who grunted and immediately tried to turn around and lash out at Scully but she anticipated his move and blocked it with her forearm. They struggled.

Scully was determined not to give her opponent the upper hand and while the man tried to reach for a bowie knife that was fastened onto is thigh, she reached for her gun and held it to his chin.

“Put your hands above your head,” she hissed but the man didn’t listen. He bucked and Scully lost balance. She fell off of him and dropped her gun.

The man scrambled forward, trying to reach his crossbow while Scully desperately fumbled for the Glock.

Her pursuer got to his weapon and feet first, his goggles hanging from his neck, and he pointed the crossbow at her.

“Well, well. Aren’t you hell-bent?! I like that in a woman.”

Scully, still on her fours, looked up at the man, breathing heavily.

“I’m with the FBI. If you harm my partner or me, you commit a federal crime.”

“I know what you are, little lady. You should have stayed away, you know? Come on, get up. I’ll take you to your partner. He’s looking forward to seeing you.”

With the gun gone, Scully had no other option. She slowly got up and tried once again to talk.

“Listen. Don’t make this any worse. If you cooperate, I will state that in my report and we might be able to work out a deal.” She knew it was unlikely but he didn’t know.

“You listen. Walk or I put an arrow in your head right here, right now.”

“I can’t see. I don’t know where I’m walking.”

“Walk carefully then and don’t bump into the trees,” the man laughed.

Taking one careful step at a time, Scully began to walk. In the distance, she saw the cabin lights so she walked towards it.

“Wait. Damnit, I said wait,” the man suddenly whispered and Scully stopped. “Get on your knees and don’t fucking move or you’ll regret it.”

The man stood approximately six feet away from her, watching something in the darkness.

“I think I saw something. Must have been deer,” he mused. “Move!”

Scully had just gotten on her feet again when a loud noise broke through the brush, followed by a bloodcurdling scream. She couldn’t see what had happened but she saw the green light of the goggles fall to the ground and a terrible gurgling sound from the man. Scully didn’t think about bumping into trees or bruises or broken bones anymore. Scully ran in naked panic.


	18. - Eighteen -

When she reached the cabin, Scully hid in the carport. She crouched in one corner and tried to get her breathing under control. What had just happened? Her scientific brain concluded that the man had been attacked by a bear, probably a grizzly. Unfortunately, the odds were against her now. Having lost her weapon, she absolutely had no leverage over the other two thugs anymore.

How long would the bear stay with its prey? Would it drag the man away?

What initially was just a crazy idea, soon became her plan. She needed to go back and fetch the night vision device, find her gun and the crossbow and then storm the cabin. Or something like that.

After having granted herself some minutes of respite (and the bear enough time to do whatever he was doing with the body), Scully got up and left the carport. She wasn’t exactly sure from where in between the trees she had emerged, but she roughly remembered the direction – that had to do.

xxxx

“George’s been gone for quite some time,” Troy noticed and got up from the table to look through the front window. 

Mulder halted his escape attempt, trying to avoid any suspicion. He had his eyes closed and pretended to be seriously up against the ropes by the blow and his capturers let him lie on the ground. What bothered him was his constant urge to cough and not being able to breathe properly but if he drew attention towards him now, they would probably notice what he was doing.

“You wanna go looking for him?”

“Nah, he’s a big boy. Can handle himself. I’m just getting very excited about the girl, you know?”

“You’re a perv, Troy. Why don’t you jerk off and release the pressure?”

“Fuck you, Danny. But if you insist… I’ll be outside for a bit,” Troy turned away from the window and left the cabin.

“Guess it’s just you and me now, Fed.”

Mulder moaned behind the duct tape. He felt his fingers bleeding from the shard but he was almost done and didn’t care. They had used a lot of tape to tie him and having to hold the shard in an upward, awkward angle didn’t make his work easy at all.

“If you promise to be quiet, I’m taking the tape off,” Danny offered.

‘No, no, no. Don’t come closer,’ Mulder prayed silently and yelled a litany of muffled curses at Danny. 

“I suppose that was a ‘no’ to being quiet,” Danny laughed. “Well, whatever. I like you better like that anyway. But let me sit you up again, you must be uncomfortable.”

xxxx

Scully almost tripped over the body. 

The bear (? The bear!!) had dragged crossbow-man a couple of yards from where it attacked but Scully quickly found what she was looking for. The green glow of the goggles felt like a beacon of hope. She put them one, not asking herself what the sticky residue on it was, adjusted them and suddenly faced a whole new world.

The forest, which seconds ago had been black and impenetrable appeared in a gloomy light and emanated something she couldn’t name. It felt even more dangerous now.

When she looked at the body, her blood froze. She had seen those marks before, a couple of days ago, in the civilization, in safety. Crossbow-man was ripped apart just like the hikers. She dealt with the same creature.

xxxx

Mulder had no time to come up with a plan.

Once Danny put his hands under his armpits to lift him up, Mulder tore at his bonds and fortunately they gave in. 

Mulder charged and head-butted Danny heavily, followed by a punch to the stomach and Danny went down.

Still tied at his legs, Mulder and half stumbled, half jumped towards the table where he hoped to find a knife, left there from dinner but in the meantime, Danny had regained his strength and got back onto his feet. He yelled for Troy and Mulder knew he was running out of time.

Danny jumped at him and both men crashed onto the table which broke under their combined mass.

Having the overwhelming urge to breathe freely, Mulder tore the gag off his mouth with one hand and with the other grabbed a piece of the slivered wood.

Unfortunately Danny had the same idea and they fought over the same piece. For a moment it almost felt comedic.

Danny punched Mulder with his free hand but Mulder countered from below him and hit him right in the jaw. Danny loosened his grip on the wood and Mulder grabbed it tightly, slamming it in Danny’s face.

Danny fell backward and lay still. Knock-out!

Mulder stilled and listened. He hoped that Troy hadn’t heard the turmoil and he’d be undisturbed a little while longer. Fortunately, Troy seemed busy (with himself) because he didn’t storm back in.

After having freed himself entirely, the agent acted quickly, dragging Danny into one of the adjacent rooms which he correctly had imagined to be bedrooms. He tied Danny with the duct tape and gagged him, strapping an extra amount of tape around the man’s body for good measure. Then he looked around. They were hunters of some sort. There had to be weapons.

xxxx

Scully found the crossbow and she found her Glock. She smiled to herself. Now she would kick some ass…

xxxx

Troy had gone to the boathouse and sat on the dock facing the water.

Danny was an asshole and a sadist, he kept teasing him although he knew that Troy was a dangerous man. At least that’s what Troy thought of himself because he had the power. George was their boss but without Troy, neither Danny nor George would have what they had. Troy promised to himself that Danny would bully him no more. When he got back to the cabin, he’d tell him. He really would this time! But first he had to blow off some steam.

Thinking of the woman at his mercy had gotten him incredibly hard, so he slid his hand into his trousers and began stroking. It didn’t take long and he came in his pants like a teenager. He breathed heavily.

Wiping his hand in his shirt, he got up, opened one of the weapons lockers they had in the boathouse and the cabin, selected an item and walked back to the building to have a word with Danny.

xxxx

Mulder stood before the other weapons cabinet and whistled. Those men were pretty well equipped that left nothing left to be desired. He picked a .40 Smith & Wesson semiautomatic police pistol, because he knew that kind and it felt good in his hand. He could have chosen something more powerful but he didn’t see himself storming through the bush with a Kel-tec - another weapon he found.

He was just roaming through the kitchen unit, looking for a medical kit to still the bleeding from his fingers, when he heard the door behind him open and the voice of the third man.

“What the hell is going on here?”

Mulder slowly turned around and stared into the barrel of a shotgun.

xxxx

Scully watched the man walk from the boathouse to the cabin. She also saw the shotgun and feared the worst.

When the man had entered the cabin and shut the door, she quickly ran towards the patio and snug underneath the front window. Taking off the night vision goggles, she very, very carefully peeked through and saw Mulder (thank god!!) facing the man at the door.

Scully didn’t think twice. She got up from her position, smashed the window and fired a shot at the man who had turned to her in shock and surprise when the glass broke. He didn’t even realize what hit him. Scully’s shot hit him right between the eyes.  
“Are you ok Mulder?” Scully asked through the shattered window.

“Yeah, no biggie!”

“Where’s the third?”

“Got him tied up in the bedroom. Where’s George?”

“Crossbow-man? Had an encounter with a grizzly.”

“Oh.”

“I’m coming in.”

xxxx

They reunited in the kitchen. Mulder secretly enjoyed receiving her undivided attention when Scully, being in full doctor’s mode, touched him here and there, felt for broken bones and checked his wounds, making notes of the damage that had been done. Mulder looked battered. 

“Can’t leave you for half an hour, huh? You always need to get yourself into trouble,” she scolded softly but she was happy to see him alive.

“I’m sorry, Scully. It wasn’t my fault though and hey, I freed myself!” Mulder managed a weak smile.

“You’re my hero! Listen Mulder, we’re going to stay the night. With two of them dead and the third immobile, we can afford it. I want you to get some sleep and then we’ll discuss how we’re proceeding from here on. Understand?”

“Yes, Ma’am. Let me just take the body outside. We can store him in the boathouse.”

“I’ll give you a hand, but I need to dress your wounds first. Help me find a medical kit.”

“There was one in the cabinet. I was going to use it when Troy came in.”

Scully found the kit and after carefully cleaning the cuts and bruises, bandaged her partner. After that, they took Troy to the boathouse and when they returned, they checked for Danny who was still unconscious and then finally looked for food.

“Spaghetti meatballs,” Mulder exclaimed happily and held two cans up. “They live like kings.”

“You sit, I’ll make us dinner.”

“It’s two in the morning Scully, it’s almost breakfast. Doesn’t matter though, spaghetti meatballs is good for every meal!”

“Whatever. I’m starving, I could eat anything right now.”

They fell silent while Scully heated up their food and she secretly kept an eye on Mulder making sure he was doing ok. They needed to get out of here quickly and him to a hospital.

When dinner/breakfast was ready, Scully filled two plates and put them on a chair they used as a makeshift table before sitting down herself.

“Hmm, smells delicious. You know, I’m enjoying myself right now. You cooking me dinner. It feels familiar. We’ll have a good conversation while we eat, laugh and relax and then I’ll take you to bed and make sweet love to you. Perfect story with a happy ending.”

“Sounds really nice, Mulder. Where do the thugs, dead bodies and monsters come in?”

“They will stay away in that chapter. The writer grants us some time for ourselves without all that. Just some boring interlude where nothing happens and we get to relax and recover, talk, laugh – you laughing at my stupid jokes, that is – and then… you know. Us-time. Everybody deserves Us-time, Scully. Even if it’s the middle of nowhere and in the craziest situation. Can it be like that for now? Just some time off for us?”

“Yeah, sounds wonderful. Let’s have some Us-time. You’re right, we deserve it,” Scully whispered and leaned forward to kiss him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I googled the weapons. Don't know anything about them.


	19. - Us-Time (Interlude) -

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smut.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For all you smutties out there ;)
> 
> I'm sooo not good in writing smut. Sorry if it's bad. In my head it looked really hot though :D

Mulder looked at her in wonder.

„Really?” he asked with a trembling voice.

“Yes, really. I think I’d like to be with you right now. I’d like to pretend nothing ever happened and that the darkness never came and swallowed us whole.”

„I’d like that, too.”

They ate in silence, enjoying each other’s company. The hot meal helped lighten their spirits and made them forget the horror and strain they’d been through. After the agents had finished eating and cleared the makeshift table (normalcy was the key-word), they made easy conversation, talking about the house and property, Baseball and the fact that Skinner looked much better completely bald with beard than back in the day clean shaven with bald crown and sparse hair.

“If I ever lose my hair – which will hopefully NEVER happen – I’m going to shave my head, too,” Mulder declared.

“I don’t know if you’re the type for that.”

“Better than running around with thin long hair and combing it so it covers the bald spots. I never understood guys who do that. It looks ridiculous.”

“Fortunately, we don’t have to worry about your hair, Mulder. It looks great,” Scully smiled.

“I got special shampoo, you know? Keeps it strong and shiny.”

“I believe you do. Mulder?”

“Yeah?”

“Now that we’ve finished eating and cleaning up…”

„Scully, I know this might kill the mood but I haven’t showered in three days and… well, I might reek a little bit. Maybe I should jump in the lake real quick.”

Scully laughed out loud. „Oh brother. Same here Mulder and I don’t care. Gives the whole thing something animalistic, don’t you think?”

Now it was Mulder’s turn to laugh.

“That’s one way to put it. But you never smell bad Scully. You always smell captivating.”

„Oh shut up. You know how I smell after a forty-eight hour shift at the hospital.”

„Yeah, like a hero. Like a woman who saved lives. I love that smell.”

„I don’t believe you but I thank you for the compliment,” Scully smiled. „Now that we’ve established that I don’t care how we smell and you obviously neither – what else are you concerned about? I know that look on your face.”

“You do, don’t you? I’m just… I mean… Are you sure this is ok for you Scully?”

“I am sure. I really want to be with you.”

“So, no more small talk? I was gonna ask you how your day was, honey bunch.”

„Oh well you know poopy head, just another day where I missed you. I’m glad you’re here now.”

“Missed daddy, didn’t you?”

Scully made a face. “Daddy? Really?”

“Too much, huh? I was just kidding, I’m not good at roleplays,” Mulder shrugged.

“Why don’t you light up the fireplace instead, Mulder? Can you do that with your hands?”

„I can do much more than that with my hands, darling,” Mulder got up to pick some wood from a pile in the corner.

„Mulder stop.”

He froze and looked at Scully nervously.

“What did I do?”

“Nothing,” Scully reassured him, “but what I’m about to say is dead serious, so you better pay attention.”

„What is it honey?”

„If at any point tonight you call me ‚babe‘, I will kill you.”

Mulder relaxed visibly. „Is ‚baby‘ ok?”

„No Mulder and you know that!”

„All right, all right. I won’t call you babe or baby,” Mulder promised, piled wood in the fireplace, lit a match and watched the wood slowly catch fire.

When it burned and the room began to heat up, he turned and happily smiled at Scully.

„Man. Made. Fire. Woman. Hot.”

„Well done, my strong man! C’mere.”

Mulder knelt before her chair, putting his hands on her knees.

„I’m here.”

„Take off your shirt.”

Not hesitating for a second, Mulder did what he was told and tossed his shirt aside. He then expectantly looked at Scully.

„I really like what I see, Mulder. You’ve been taking good care of yourself,” Scully whispered and caressed Mulders shoulders and arms. „I’ve always had a thing for your arms. And for your abs,” her hands trailed from his arms, over his chest down to his abs. 

„And for your legs. I would love to see them. Take your pants off for me please.”

Not answering but swallowing hard, Mulder got back to his feet and shed his pants and socks. He stepped right before Scully who, still sitting on the chair, was now eyelevel with the evidence of his arousal only covered by boxer-briefs.

He didn’t touch her, he didn’t move. He waited.

Scully touched his legs, the insides of his thighs and Mulder moaned softly.

„I’ve missed you so much.”

„I missed you, too Scully. It almost killed me.”

„I know, but now we’re here and we won’t think of anything else,” her hand went to his groin and softly stroked through the thin material before pulling the briefs down so Mulder could step out.

Scully smacked her lips.

„Scully.”

She got up and took his hand. 

„Take me to bed, Mulder.”

Not having to be told twice, Mulder led Scully to the second bedroom, where he got to work to undress her and soon they were facing each other in their naked glory.

There was no stopping now. Mulder’s hands were all over her, his mouth and tongue exploring and claiming hers. What he – what they - had missed for the past years, they took back at once.

Not letting go of each other, they crashed on the lower bunk, Scully on top.

Mulder’s hands roamed across her back and down to her buttocks, squeezing and massaging them. His hips jerked and it took a lot of self-control to not come from simply being able to touch her again.

„Slow. I’m sorry, I need to slow down,” he gasped and Scully nodded understandingly.

Mulder flipped them and now Scully was on her back with Mulder kissing, licking and nibbling at her skin. His hands found her breasts and his mouth followed, sucking at her nipples that made Scully moan.

He trailed her body with his mouth, his hands never leaving her breasts, gently squeezing her nipples now.

Soon he reached his designated destination and when his tongue found her clit, Scully’s hands went to his head, holding him in position and urging him to prove he was still working out with sunflower seeds.

„I’m coming. Oh my god, I’m coming,” she panted and her orgasm washed over her like a giant wave. Her hips ground against Mulder’s face, fucking him and for a moment, he feared he would suffocate. But then her spasms subsided and she let go of him.

„I want you inside me, Mulder. Please, I need you.”

Mulder crawled back up to her, his face wet from her juices and breathing heavily.

„Oh my god, are you ok? I’m sorry Mulder, I forgot about your pneumonia!”

„I’m fine Scully. I’m doing great actually,” Mulder smiled and kissed her deeply. Scully had never minded tasting herself so she kissed him back forcefully.

„Fuck me then, Mulder.”

Mulder took Scully’s leg and put it on his shoulder. His cock found her entrance and he carefully entered inch by inch until he was fully inside her.

Letting her adjust to him, he waited and when Scully smiled and nodded, he withdrew and moved forward again. Always checking if he was hurting her, Mulder established a slow rhythm and when Scully told him to ‚fuck her brains out‘, he banged her in every sense of the word.

„I’m afraid it won’t take long, Scully,” he panted in between thrusts.

„Don’t worry. I’m about to come again soon,” Scully assured him. Her hand found her clit and she screamed when a second orgasm claimed her body.

With Scully’s walls contracting around him, Mulder experienced sensory overload and exploded inside her. His whole body shuttered and he pulled Scully up towards him. He gripped her tight and held on to her until he was fully spent.

They collapsed exhaustedly.

„That was amazing,” Scully sighed, happily nuzzling Mulder’s neck.

„Yeah,” was the only word Mulder could come up with. His brain was fucked out, too.

Scully covered them with the blanket and snuggled up to him. He seemed to have passed out.

„Mulder?”

„Yeah?”

„Thank you. I really enjoy Us-time!”

„Yeah. Me too. We’re not done yet, though.”

Scully smiled. “That’s good. I want more.”

xxxx

They didn’t sleep, they just dozed. If they slept, time would pass quickly and both of them didn’t want that. They could sleep later.

The cabin was warm and cozy and the bunk not too uncomfortable. Mulder thought that he didn’t care, he could be comfortable anywhere in the world as long as Scully was lying next to him.

Scully’s fingers were tracing patterns across his chest and he was mimicking them on her back.

“I hope this night never ends,” Mulder whispered.

Instead of replying, Scully kissed his lips and entered his mouth with her tongue. Her hand went to his groin and she was pleased he responded accordingly.

She softly stroked him and his hips met her rhythm while his hands desperately searched for ways to pleasure her as well.

“Shh Mulder. It’s ok. I want you to relax and enjoy. Can you do that for me? Just enjoy what I’m doing to you.”

Mulder nodded and took a deep breath, placing his hands at his sides.

“That’s it. I’ve missed you so much, I want to rediscover your body and I want to take my time.”

The bruises on his ribs worried Scully for a moment but Mulder didn’t flinch at her ministrations.

She kissed and licked his collarbone and his neck, making him shudder. Scully smiled to herself: Of course she remembered his most erogenous zones and that was why she paid some extra attention to that particular area until Mulder moaned and quivered underneath her.

Only then did she continue her exploration of his body.

Her tongue went to his nipples, alternatingly licking and blowing onto them until they were hard little nubs. 

“Good?” she asked and looked at his expression. His eyes were closed and he made a very concentrated face. He didn’t look relaxed at all.

“Yeah, very good. I’m just trying not to burst.”

Scully moved back up to him and stroked his face. His eyes flickered open and he looked at her with dilated pupils.

“Tell me if it’s too much, ok?”

“It’s not too much, Dana. It will never be. I’m incredibly happy right now. But not just because you’re doing this,” he quickly added.

“I’m incredibly happy, too. Ready to continue?”

“Kiss me, Scully.”

She did and they just kissed for a long time. Scully finally broke away, leaving Mulder pouting for a second before he obviously remembered that he was still at the receiving end.

Scully’s hands and mouth moved further down his body but didn’t touch his rock solid erection.

“This is torture,” Mulder gasped.

“I know. Hang in there, it’ll be worth it,” Scully soothed and stroked his his legs, watching his struggle to stay calm. He was beautiful like that and she enjoyed the power she still had over him but she didn’t want to make him suffer too long, so her hand went to his scrotum and massaged gently.

“Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck,” he shouted and then Scully finally lowered her head to suck his cock.

‘She hums, holy fuck, she hums’ were Mulder’s thoughts while Scully pleasured him and then his mind went blank. He gripped the sheets tightly when all he really wanted was to grab her head and fuck her face but he didn’t want to hurt her or make her gag.

“Scully. Please. I can’t…”

Scully stopped immediately and re-positioned herself on top of him. She guided him into her and rode him hard, her hands on his knees, steadying herself.

He came, screaming her name.

Scully slumped onto him, feeling him softening inside her. She kissed his sweat-soaked face.

“Good?” she asked again but instead of answering, Mulder just nodded and kissed her back. “I’m glad,” she replied with a smile.

They stayed like that for the rest of the night, never letting go of each other.

Morning came way too soon and with it returned the horror.


	20. - Twenty -

They awoke from loud banging from the neighboring room.

“Guess Danny’s awake,” Mulder mumbled and pulled Scully closer to him. He didn’t want to get up and face the day.

“We should check on him, Mulder. We just can’t ignore him.”

“Why not?”

“Mulder…”

With a sigh, Mulder got up and looked for his clothes while Scully watched him appreciatively.

“How are you feeling?”

“A little sore around the loins, but no aching muscles if that’s what you’re concerned about,” Mulder waggled his eyebrows.

“No, I’m referring to your pneumonia. You coughed badly a few times last night and I’m concerned it has gotten worse.”

“I’m not lying to you, Scully. I don’t feel very well. I think I got a fever and my head feels like it’s covered in cotton.”

“You should take it easy then while we’re here. We’ll check for a radio and call for help. Our GPS trackers got to be sending our signal, too – I’m convinced there will be help here, soon.”

Mulder nodded. “We should have put this stuff next to the fireplace. It still hasn’t dried entirely,” he said while getting dressed.

“Perhaps Danny knows where our gear is and we should look around for dry clothes. Those people surely have more clothes than those they’re wearing. By the way, I think I heard something like a scream yesterday. We’ll have to ask Danny about Robson. He probably knows where he is.”

“Yeah, we’ll ask him. Uh, Scully?”

“Yes, Mulder?”

“Thank you for last night. That was really nice.”

“Yes it was and it can be again – once we’ve gotten professional help.”

Mulder nodded. “I understand your terms and I haven’t changed my mind: I’m willing to try. If I ever felt unsure about it, last night wiped away the uncertainty. I’ll do everything I can to keep the darkness out of our lives.”

“Me too, Mulder. We’ll work it out, I’m sure.”

xxxx

“While you were fucking like rabbits, I almost pissed myself you son of a bitch,” Danny greeted when Mulder entered his room.

“Good morning to you too, asshole,” Mulder retorted.

“Where are Troy and George? What did you do with them?”

“They’re dead. You’re the only one left, so you better cut the crap or I’ll end you, too,” Mulder growled not mentioning that he had actually neither ‘ended’ George nor Troy himself but it did the trick and Danny stared at him in disbelief.

“You’re kidding, right? Where are they?”

“Troy’s in the boathouse. I’m not sure you’d recognize him though. Blew his face away,” Mulder took Danny by the arm and helped him up. “I’m going to cut your legs free so you can walk to the outhouse. Don’t move.”

Mulder crouched to cut away the duct tape and Danny used this chance to kick at him but Mulder caught his foot and twisted it, making Danny fall over and land hard on the floor.

“You know, I should kick the shit out of you, just like you did with me yesterday. But I’m not like you. Get the fuck up or I let you piss yourself.”

Slowly, realization seeped in and Danny got to his feet.

“They’re dead? Both of ‘em?”

“Yeah. You’re on your own.”

“Well, I don’t care about Troy that fucking perv but George…”

“You seemed to have been really close,” Mulder said and led him outside.

“Troy and I, we were business partners. Nothing more. George was my friend though. Now will you free my hands or how am I supposed to do this?”

Mulder pulled the gun and knife and cut Danny’s hands free as well. 

“Leave the door open.”

“I gotta take a dump.”

“Leave. The. Door. Open. Or I’ll shoot you.”

“Suit yourself,” Danny shrugged and dropped his pants. Mulder stepped a couple of feet away but kept the gun pointed at his prisoner.

When Danny had finished, the men walked back to the cabin where Scully waited in the main room.

“So you’re the chick George was after.”

“Shut up and sit down,” Mulder hissed and shoved Danny onto one of the chairs. He tied him the same way he’d been tied the night before and positioned himself before him. Scully stayed in the background. “Where’s Robson?”

“Who?”

“Sergeant Robson. The police officer we were with.”

“Oh him, right. Don’t know. Troy took care of him.”

“What do you mean? Did Troy kill Sergeant Robson?”

“I guess.”

“You guess, or you know?” Scully intervened.

“You know what I know? Whatever he,” Danny nodded at Mulder, “did to you last night, I can do better. You let me go and I’ll show you how it’s really done. First I’ll fuck you and then your partner. Bet he’d never had it up the ass before, huh?” he licked his lips and eyed Mulder hungrily.

Scully could see her partner tense up and lose his cool exterior, so she stepped forward and in between the men.

“You know what I know?” she asked in a calm voice. “I know that if you don’t shut up, I’ll tie you outside against a tree and wait for the thing that ripped your partner apart to do the same thing to you. How’d you like that?”

Danny turned very pale and was obviously very frighten.

“What? It… I thought he…” he looked at Mulder again. “Hey, I was just kidding. Don’t do that. Don’t leave me outside.” 

“Then why don’t you tell me what Troy did to Sergeant Robson and what you’re doing out here at all?”

“We’re miners. There’s this mine not too far away from here. We’re working there.”

“Gold?”

“No, diamonds. A couple of months ago, George told me about a mine where they found diamonds, like years back you know? But there was this story about that thing and they had to abandon it ‘cause it didn’t want them there and killed some miners, but it was a folktale you know, not real. At least that’s what we believed. So George and I thought, hey let’s go out there and, you know, big money waiting and all. And while we were discussing the details, Troy eavesdropped on us and he came over, like, you know we were sitting at a bar down at the spit and told us that he overheard us talking and that we had to be careful out there ‘cause IT was still out there and it was real but we shouldn’t worry, he knew how to keep in in check,” Danny had to stop for breath.

“Did Troy ever say what it was and how he would keep it in check?” Mulder, having calmed down, asked. Scully could see that the possibility of facing a monster after all got him excited again.

“I’ve never seen it. I heard it though and I heard what it did. I know what kept it in check,” Danny averted his eyes and Mulder finished his sentence.

“Humans. You kidnapped those hikers and brought them to it to distract it so it wouldn’t attack you. Troy drilled it, didn’t he? What is it? A Mothman? A demon?”

“I don’t know what these things are you’re talking about and I don’t know what IT is. Like I said, Troy took care of that. George and I provided the distraction and Troy did the rest. I think he made them run and set the thing after them. All we needed to do afterwards was bring the bodies elsewhere so that we wouldn’t be found out.”

“Human live bait. I can’t believe it,” Scully said disgustedly.

“Where is Sergeant Robson? I suppose that’s what Troy meant when he said he wanted to ‘use’ Robson, right? He wanted to use him as bait too,” Mulder asked equally disgusted.

“Yeah,” Danny agreed quietly, seeming to finally fully understand what they had done and the implication from that.

“Where is the mine? Do you have a map? More importantly, do you have a radio?” If Scully was about to chase monsters, she wanted backup.

“We have one at the mine. None here. We’ve used simple short distance walkie-talkies to communicate out here. The radio’s at the mine in case we urgently needed help. If the thing got out of control, you know?”

“I want you to show us the way,” Mulder ordered.

“Yeah, sure. We need weapons though and we’ll have to take the boat. There’s no way to hike there.”

Another coughing fit overcame Mulder and he doubled over until it subsided. Scully waved him aside.

“You should stay here. This is getting worse by the minute and I’m afraid that if you keep going, it’ll leave permanent damage to your heart.”

“Scully, I can’t let you do this alone. I’ll rest as soon as we’ve saved Robson and put this thing down, I promise.”

“I can’t force you to stay here but as your doctor, your condition really concerns me, Mulder.”

“It concerns me too, Scully but we don’t have time to think about the consequences now,” Mulder gently touched her hand but quickly withdrew as if he burned himself. He looked at Scully insecurely. “Is it ok? I mean, us-time is over but is this still ok?”

“Mulder, it’s me. You’ve always touched me and never cared about personal space. I wouldn’t want to miss that now.”

“I always cared about personal space, Scully. I always cared to be in yours to protect you and make sure no harm would come to you,” Mulder grinned. “I’m still very protective.”

“Yes, you are. Come on, let’s find us some dry clothes before we head out.”


	21. - Twenty-one -

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the wait, life got in the way.

They found dry clothes and even if they were way too big for Scully, she kept them on, put a too long belt around her waist and cut the legs of a pair of trousers short. It felt good to be warm and dry and even the rain finally seemed to have mercy – it hadn’t rained all morning.

After a quick breakfast, consisting of cold baked beans and sausages, the agents armed themselves sufficiently (John Rambo would have been jealous), took their prisoner and went to the boathouse.

When Danny saw Troy’s covered up silhouette, he retched.

“I don’t get it,” Mulder said. “You said that you had to drag the bodies of innocent people across the forest and obviously that didn’t bother you. Now you see the covered body of your partner who you yourself call a pervert and you start retching. What is wrong with you?”

“This is different. I knew him.”

Scully looked at Mulder who looked back at her. “I’m beginning to think we’ve already caught or killed the real monsters here.”

The three stepped onto the boat and Mulder loosened the ropes. Scully steered.

“How long until we get there?” Scully screamed over the roaring engine while they sped across the lake. 

“To the end of the lake over there and then another mile or so on foot. We should get there in an hour,” Danny screamed back. He sat at the bow, his hands tied behind his back, and was unprotected against the boat’s crashing.

Neither Mulder nor Scully pitied him.

When they came ashore, Mulder helped Danny who stumbled out of the boat. “Tough ride?”

“If we ever make it out of here, I’ll sue you for police brutality!” Danny spat and received a knock from Mulder’s fist in return.

“You do that. I’m pretty sure you’ll get a lot of sympathy from the judge,” Mulder replied calmly. “Now move and lead the way.”

They had walked on a small path for a while when Scully held Mulder back and whispered “What if this is a trap and he wants to take us to that demon-monster-thing?”

“We’re armed, Scully,” Mulder replied and held up his automatic weapon, “we’ll put it down before it gets to us.”

“What if common weapons don’t work on the thing?” Her voice was strained.

“Scully, we’ll be alright. We’re under a lot of stress right now and our imagination is getting out of hands. We’ll be fine if we stay calm! But it is kinda sexy to hear those theories from you.” Mulder grinned but suddenly coughed and held his head.

“Mulder, we should head back!”

“Hey, remember when those green bugs wanted to get us? We stayed calm and rational and we got out of there. Like we did many times afterwards. Why should this time be any different? Bad weeds grow tall.”

“You’re right. We’ve been in worse situations.” Scully breathed deeply and calmed herself. She knew Mulder was right but she also remembered that ‘the green bug incident’ was a very close call and that they almost hadn’t made it out, if it wasn’t for Spinney. 

She hoped that this time, their Spinney would be Karl. Their lives depended on it. Mulder’s life depended on it.

xxxx

Finally, they reached the mine or what was supposed to be the mine. In fact, it didn’t look like much more than a cave in a rock and a small shed at the entrance.

If you’d asked him, Mulder would admit he was a little disappointed but he knew too well that the worst places hardly ever looked evil at all.

“So this is it then? Where is Robson?” Scully asked and looked around.

“I don’t know. Maybe inside the mine. I don’t know where Troy held them, I swear.”

“All I want is to call out for him but I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Scully explained to Mulder and he nodded in agreement.

“We should look for the radio first,” he suggested instead.

“The radio’s in the shed,” Danny answered unasked and Mulder turned to get it.

“Be careful, Mulder!” Scully warned.

Mulder had just pulled open the unlocked shed door and paused to cough when a machete swished out and crashed into the frame just inches from his face.

“Mulder! Are you ok?” Scully yelled and ran towards him. 

Mulder stood frozen like a statue, a look of disbelief (panic?) on his face.

“That was close,” he gasped. “That was really close.”

“Whoops, guess I forgot about that one,” Danny had come looking to see what was going on.

Mulder shot him a glance but didn’t reply. He carefully stepped inside the shed and looked around. There was some mining equipment, lamps and a lot of junk and finally, in the corner, he found the radio.

Not remembering the correct frequency, he tried them all.

“This is special agent Fox Mulder with the FBI. Can anybody hear me, over? Karl, are you there? Can anybody hear me?”

When no reply came in, he tried again.

“This is a distress call. We are in a life threatening situation and urgently request anyone who can hear us to reply, over.”

When still no reply came, he desperately looked over to Scully who had been waiting in the door.

“We’ll try again in a little while, Mulder. Come on out, we need to look for Robson, too.”

“I’ll try one more time, Scully. Hang on.” Mulder clutched the transmitter and tried again on all frequencies until Scully stepped in and gently took it from his hands.

“Later, Mulder. We’ll try again later.”

Mulder nodded in defeat and the agents stepped out from the shed. They walked over to Danny, who made no effort in hiding that he was trying to get rid of his ties.

“We’ll check our surroundings first, you’ll join us,” Mulder informed and took Danny by the arm. “Maybe it would make sense if we didn’t split up this time.”

“Couldn’t agree more.”

They methodically began searching the area close to the mine. Like they had done the day before, they moved in circles and soon came across a wooden cover on the forest ground.

“Help me get this up,” Mulder ordered Danny and cut his ties. Both men managed to lift the cover and put it on the side.

They now stood before a hole, probably six by six feet wide. Scully looked down but she couldn’t see the ground.

“Robson?” She called. “Sergeant Robson, are you down there?”

There was no reply.

“I’ll go back to the mine and get a lamp and a rope. You can lower me down and if Robson’s there, we can lift him up right away.”

“We all go back, Scully. No one goes anywhere on her or his own.”

xxxx

They returned a couple of minutes later. A rope was attached around Scully and Mulder carefully lowered her into the hole. He did this on his own, not trusting Danny, whom he had tied and sat against a tree.

When Scully felt ground beneath her feet, she glanced around but the hole was empty except for what seemed to be empty cans and waste fabric. Robson wasn’t there.

“He’s not here, Mulder. You can lift me up again,” she shouted up to her partner who had been watching her the whole time.

Mulder began to pull and Scully slowly ascended again. She was half-way up when she heard shouting. The rope tightened and she was quickly lifted further before it gave way and she fell. Before she impacted, the rope tightened again and she was left dangling a couple of feet above ground. There was a struggle above her, she could tell.

“Mulder? Mulder!!!”

She wobbled heavily and then Scully fell, the rope landing next to her. 

Scully was trapped.

xxxx

“He’s not here, Mulder. You can lift me up again,” Mulder heard Scully shout and began pulling her up again.

A sound from behind him made him turn just in time to see that Danny had gotten up and approached him in full speed.

“Fuck you fed!” Danny screamed and with his hands tied behind his back, he could only ram Mulder. And ram him, he did. Both men fell backwards, Mulder losing the rope shortly before gripping it tightly again.

From their lying position, they kicked at each other, both having no hands free to fight.

One kick hit Mulder in the stomach and the air was drained from his lungs. He let go of the rope and tried to grab it but it was too late – the rope descended into the hole and he heard a thud that must had come from Scully.

Furious now and with his hands free, he threw himself at Danny and punched him once, twice, thrice… until Danny didn’t move. With all willpower he had left, Mulder withdrew himself from the unconscious man and breathed heavily.

He was sweat soaked and shaking, his lungs burned and his head swam and before he knew it, he fell over and passed out.

xxxx

“Mulder! Mulder can you hear me?” Scully screamed but there was no reply. She looked around again, hoping to find a way out.

She had the rope, she had a light, there was trash and fabric. Maybe she could macgyver her way out of this.

‘Come on, Dana. Think of something….’ she pushed herself. And after a while, she had an idea: Bolas. If she could somehow attach the cans to the rope and fill them with dirt to make them heavier, seal them with the fabric and then throw them up so they would tangle in a nearby tree or bush and hold the rope, she could climb out.

If the heavy cans hit Mulder – wherever he was and hopefully he was ok – in the head, she would make amends later in a very special way.

Wasting no time, Scully got to work.


	22. - Twenty-two -

Robson heard screaming. At first, he thought he had imagined it but it sounded too real.

He started yelling back and hoped to be heard but when no one came, he fell silent again.

xxxx

Checking her makeshift bolos again, Scully finally decided to give it a try. She was proud of her craftsmanship and already saw herself climbing out of her prison and lecturing Mulder on how to get out of dangerous situations simply by thinking rationally and using one’s wit. ‘Unlike him’, she would add and roll her eyes at him and he would laugh and then they both would laugh and everything would be fine. 

Damn, she was worried about him.

She got to her feet, picked up the bolos and spun them. The hard part was to let go just when the rotation would catapult them up and out.

Scully had tied the other end around her waist to make sure the whole rope wouldn’t fly out.

It took a few attempts to get a good rhythm and she hit the walls a few times but finally, the bolos went out of the hole. Every time Scully carefully pulled them back, hoping they would catch somewhere but they always crashed back down.

One time, they hit her shoulder and she screamed in pain but she wouldn’t give up.

Spin, fly, pull. Spin, fly, pull. Over and over again. When her arms tired, she took a break and once again wondered what had happened to Mulder.

xxxx

If Mulder hadn’t been passed out, he would have seen the flying cans and he would have admired Scully for her inventiveness. 

Unfortunately, the pneumonia took its toll and he was just too exhausted to bring himself back. He relished the darkness and peacefulness that surrounded him. He didn’t feel cold or pain. 

Mulder didn’t know how much time had passed when he finally came to and weakly opened his good eye.

There was movement in the woods.

He glanced over to Danny, who still was unconscious. That could only mean that somebody else was out there. Maybe Robson. Maybe Kush… No, please not now!

Whatever it was Mulder saw, it was lurking in the brush, watching him. Mulder could see the gestalt, as it made no real effort in hiding from him. 

But what it was, Mulder couldn’t tell. It was blurred and he guessed it came from his impaired vision.

‘It knows it won’ he thought, ‘it just hasn’t decided yet which one of us to get first’. He wouldn’t give up without a fight, though.

Mulder stumbled to his feet and looked around. His weapons were lying by a tree, maybe thirty feet away.

He looked back at the thing. 

It had disappeared.

“Oh great. We’re playing cat and mouse,” Mulder mumbled and then shouted “SCULLY, CAN YOU HEAR ME?”

“MULDER? ARE YOU ALRIGHT?”

“Depends. How about you?” 

“I’m ok, Mulder. I’m trying to get out of here.”

“I’ll be there in a second. I’m… uh… a little occupied at the moment,” Mulder was carefully moving towards the hole and at the same time constantly turning and watching his surroundings.

“What is it?”

“It’s here, Scully. The thing is here and I am still unarmed,” he whispered excitedly.

He had reached the edge and looked down.

“Scully, I’m going after it. It’s playing with me and I want to put an end to it.”

“Mulder, help me out of here first.”

“There’s no time, Scully and I think you’re safe down there.”

“Mulder, don’t be stupid, help me out of here.”

“I won’t be long, I promise!”

And with that, Mulder picked up his weapons and went after the thing.

xxxx

Scully couldn’t believe what just happened. Mulder had ditched and left her in a hole in the ground in the middle of the Alaskan wilderness.

Oh he would pay for this!

She spun the bolos again furiously and this time, they caught right away and the rope hung tight. Don’t mess with angry Dana Scully!

Scully tested the lifting force and when she was convinced the rope would carry her weight, she carefully began to climb up.

Once she had reached the edge and climbed over, Scully looked around to find Danny out cold on the ground. She went to check if he was still alive and when she found a pulse, she concerned herself with other things. 

Finding her own weapons wasn’t difficult as they were where she’d left them before Mulder had lowered her into the hole.

She picked them up, checked the chambers, unlocked them and looked around for traces of where Mulder could have gone.

When she couldn’t make out any, she yelled.

“MULDER? MULDER WHERE ARE YOU?”

xxxx

Mulder? 

That was Agent Scully’s voice.

Robson got to his feet.

“AGENT SCULLY! AGENT SCULLY! CAN YOU HEAR ME?”

xxxx

Instead of Mulder replying, Scully realized it was Robson who screamed her name.

“ROBSON, I CAN HEAR YOU. KEEP HOLLERING, I’LL FIND YOU!”

xxxx

“Thank God!” Robson sighed. “I’M HERE AGENT SCULLY, FOLLOW MY VOICE! I’M IN A HOLE!”

Five minutes later, Robson saw Scully’s face peek down to him.

“Are you ok, Sergeant Robson?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Cold, stiff and hungry, but not injured or anything,” he replied.

“I got a rope. I’m throwing it down to you. Can you climb?”

“Think so. OK, I got it. Will it hold?”

“I hope so and I got the other end tied to a tree. It should hold.”

“Alright then, keep your fingers crossed,” Robson laughed and finally escaped his prison.

When he reached the ledge, he instinctively hugged Scully tight.

“Thank you, Agent Scully. I’m so glad you found me.”

“I’m glad to see you alive and well, Sergeant Robson and I must say, I’m relieved you’re here. Mulder’s missing.”

“What do you mean?”

“We came here with one of the miners. Mulder lowered me in another hole because we needed to check if you were down there. He and the miner fought, I think, and Mulder dropped me and I was trapped. When I last saw him, from down below, he told me that he saw something and went after it.”

“He left you in the hole?”

“Yes,” Scully sighed, “he thought I was safer down there. I freed myself in the end. The miner is still unconscious, but Mulder’s gone.”

“That is… irresponsible. We better find him then, so you can kick his ass.”

“Oh I will, believe me! Sergeant Robson, Mulder’s ill. He’s got pneumonia and a fever. If anything happens to him out there, I wouldn’t forgive myself.”

“I understand, Agent Scully. Don’t worry, we’ll find him.”

xxxx

Where did it go?

A second ago, Mulder saw Kushtaka or whatever its name was right in front of him, now it was gone but it didn’t matter. He’d find it again.

He laughed; The hunter had become the hunted. He wasn’t going to be torn apart by that thing, he was going to put it down and end this nightmare once and for all.

He crouched for breath. Damn that pneumonia. Or was it his age? No. Definitely pneumonia. And a fever. He was so hot and cold at the same time and he could hardly see straight.

Once he’d finished the job and returned victorious, Scully would take care of him, he was sure of it.

She also would come back to the house and move in with him again and he’d be the good person, he had promised to be. No darkness in the Mulder-household. 

Mulder-household. He liked that. 

He had already made specific plans for when Scully had come back. One included them sleeping-in on weekends, he would make coffee and breakfast and serve Scully in bed. She would thank him by making sweet love to him. They wouldn’t get up at all. The sun would shine and the birds would sing. Yeah, sounded really nice.

Another coughing fit struck him and this time, he had to admit to himself it had gotten beyond worse. This was dangerous.

Mulder looked around. He didn’t know where he was, there was no path, no sign of civilization, no sound except the birds. And the rain.

“Will it ever stop raining here?” he said out loud.

A crack to his left made him look up slowly. There it was again and it ran from him.

The agent didn’t shoot though. Only cowards shot others in the back. He wasn’t a coward. This was an honest hunt. Man versus beast. Or monster. Or demon. Or whatever. Mulder gathered himself, got up and followed.

xxxx

Scully and Robson made sure, Danny wouldn’t go anywhere before they headed out to search for Mulder. They had considered putting him in the hole instead but decided against it, so Danny woke up to find himself at the entrance to the mine, hands and feet tied even more tightly than before.

“What are you doing? Where are you going? You can’t leave me here on my own,” he complained.

“Shut up,” Scully snapped and put a piece of cloth in Danny’s mouth as a gag.

“Agent Scully?” Robson called her from the shed.

“Yes, what is it?”

“I found out why you didn’t receive a reply when Agent Mulder called for help. There was a slack joint but I fixed it. We can radio out now.”

“That’s fantastic news, Sergeant Robson. Go ahead please!”

Robson nodded and picked up the transmitter. “This is Jeff Robson. Can anybody hear me, over?”

There was static and then: 

“Holy shit Jeff. This is Karl. It’s so good to hear your voice, over.”

“Yeah man. Likewise. You got the SAR out for us already? Over.”

“Unfortunately no. There had been an incident at Emerald Lake and both SAR teams were called in. When they’ve finished, I can send them out to you. Over.”

“Yeah, that would be really nice Karl. We’re having a little bit of a situation here. Over.”

“What’s going on? Last I heard YOU went missing. Over.”

“Now it’s Agent Mulder that’s missing. And we’re holding a suspect in the killings of the seven hikers. Over.”

“Wow that’s some news. OK listen, I’m still receiving the GPS signals of Agents Mulder and Scully. I can lead you towards Mulder. Over.”

“The radio’s stationary, I can’t take it with me. You give me his coordinates and we’ll head out in that direction. Over.”

“Roger that. You got something to write? Agent Mulder’s coordinates are North 59°31'04.6" West 151°09'56.6". Over.”

“I repeat North fifty-nine degrees, thirty-one minutes, zero four point six seconds, West one-hundred-fifty-one degrees, zero nine minutes, fifty-six point six seconds. Please confirm. Over.”

“Confirmed Jeff. Over.”

“Awesome. Can you see if he’s moving and if yes, in which direction? Over.”

“He is currently moving in a northeasterly direction. Over.”

“Roger. We’ll head out now and I’ll radio back in once we found him. Keep an eye on us, ok? Over.”

“You got it, Jeff. Good luck. Over and out.”

Robson turned around to Scully.

“Alright then. Let’s go and find your partner.”

xxxx

Mulder had followed the thing for another while now. His strength was weakening and he was more stumbling than actually running. Every time he thought he was getting closer, the thing had disappeared.

He began to suspect that Kushtaka had done what was said of it: It had lured Mulder and led him away from the group.

Mulder stopped once again, his energy was spent. His breath was ragged and he wasn’t sweating anymore. A very bad sign when you’re having a fever. He was dehydrated. 

He sat down and dropped the weapons by his side.

“Guess I miscalculated. Scully will be so mad at me,” he said to himself.

“SCULLY! SCULLAAY!!!” Mulder yelled weakly but his voice broke. Then calm and definite: “Hey Kushtaka. You can come out now. I don’t want to play anymore.”

Mulder closed his eyes and rested his head in his hands. He still hoped but didn’t believe that Scully would find him in time. 

A growl made him open his eyes again and he found himself face to face with Kushtaka. 

It was over.


	23. - Twenty-three -

“We’ve reached Mulder’s last coordinates,” Robson announced, looking at the GPS device.

“North-East would be that way,” Scully pointed, “and check this out.”

There were some freshly broken twigs and boot-prints leading away which they followed.

“We need to move faster,” Scully urged but Robson shook his head.

“If we rush, we might overlook something important. We are of no use to Agent Mulder if anything happens to us.”

Scully silently agreed but her concern for Mulder grew by the minute. How much time had passed since he left? Two hours? They could be too late.

Suddenly, Robson stopped and held up his hand.

“What is it?” Scully whispered.

“A bear,” Robson whispered back. “It hasn’t scented us yet, the wind prevents it.”

“Shouldn’t we make noise or something to chase it away?”

“If we did and it ran in Agent Mulder’s direction, that wouldn’t do us any good, would it? We need to watch what happens. If we have to, I’ll shoot it.”

They crouched and waited.

The bear’s interest was aimed at a bush of cloudberries and only faded when the last berry had disappeared. It then moved along and fortunately neither in the direction of Robson and Scully nor where they thought Mulder had gone.

Scully let out a deep breath.

“Let’s go!”

xxxxx

“Fucking Feds. Stupid, fucking Feds. I fucking hate them. They’re going to pay for this. I swear to God, I’ll kill ‘em. I’ll fuck ‘em first and then I’ll kill them and then I’ll fuck them again. I let him fuck her dead corpse. Yeah, that’s what I’m gonna do. And then I’ll chop his head off and fuck his face. Yeah, right. Motherfucker. No one kills my friend. No one!” 

Danny ranted and furiously rubbed his bound wrists against the stone. He could feel it give in already. Just a few more minutes and he’d be free and he’d go after those assholes and then they would pay.

That bitch had tried to gag him but he had spit it out after they had left. Ha! Nobody fucks with Danny Rickards.

He was so occupied with his revenge plans, that he didn’t hear or see anything and when he finally heard the deep growl and saw the thing approach him, it was way too late.

xxxx

“MULDER! Oh my God. No.” Scully rushed to her partner who lay on his side before her, unmoving.

Expecting the worst, she knelt beside him and carefully turned him around. He was unconscious and unnaturally pale.

Opening his jacket, Scully checked for a pulse and for possible wounds and when she found he wasn’t injured, she looked up to Robson.

“He’s burning up and needs immediate medical attention.”

“I’ll carry him back to the mine and we’ll ask Karl to immediately get us out of here,” Robson suggested.

“Hopefully it won’t be too late by then.”

Robson carefully lifted Mulder over his shoulder and they began the hike back. With the additional (dead-) weight, they moved slower and when they’ve finally reached the mine, it was already getting dark again.

“We’ll put him in the mine. He should stay dry and we must make a fire to keep him warm, despite the fever.”

“I’ll put him near the entrance and start a fire there, so that the smoke can get out.”

Robson deposited Mulder, while Scully collected flammable material from around the mine.

All the while, Mulder remained unresponsive.

“I’ll get to the radio,” Robson announced and went to call for help. Scully stayed with her partner, gathering him in her arms.

“Mulder, can you hear me?” she whispered softly. “You’re safe; we’ll get you out of here. Robson is back and he’s calling for help. You have to stay with me, you hear me?”

“They’ll be here as soon as they can,” Robson said quietly. Scully had not noticed him coming back. “Should be here pretty soon, but Karl couldn’t say when exactly.”

“He needs fluids. He’s completely dehydrated and his fever is bad.”

“What can I do?”

“Look for drinking water. If you can’t find any, you’ll have to go to the lake. Then boil some over the fire, we need to get it into him somehow.”

“The water around here’s pretty clean…”

“I don’t want to take any chances. Please Robson, hurry,” she pleaded.

“You got it, Agent Scully!”

xxxx

Robson returned a couple of minutes later with a gallon of water.

“There’s more where this came from. Found a supply locker and broke it open. We also got food,” he held up some energy bars.

“Excellent,” Scully smiled with relief. “I need to ask you another favor. If Mulder doesn’t wake up, we’ll have to force the water into him. Can you look for a tube or a hose we could get through his esophagus? And also something to put in his mouth so he won’t bite down. And a smaller bin or a glass, please. In the meantime, I’ll try to wake him, because I’d rather not intubate him here.”

“I understand. Agent Scully?”

“Yes?”

“Might be a bad time to mention it but our prisoner is gone.”

“What do you mean, he’s gone?”

“I’m not able to say for sure. He’s not where we left him, so we must assume he escaped. Just keep your weapon close to you, ok?”

“Thanks for the warning, Jeff. I will.”

“I’ll go and look for what you requested.”

Scully nodded thankfully and then turned to her partner.

“Mulder, come on wake up. Don’t make me do this to you.” Scully wetted a piece of cloth from the bolos she had kept in her pocket and wiped Mulder’s face with it. Then she carefully dripped some water on his lips but he didn’t show any drinking reflex and the water ran from his lips down his neck.

“I found this, but I’ll have to clean it before you can use it,” Robson returned and held up a small, black rubber tube, a bottle and a piece of wood. “I found this in the shed, it’s from a pump they probably used in the mine.”

“It’s perfect. When you’ve cleaned it hand it to me and fill some water in the bottle. Is the wood smooth? I don’t want to have to remove splinters from his mouth.”

“Absolutely smooth, Agent Scully, I’ve checked.”

“Of course you have. I’m sorry.”

“No need to apologize. I’ll get right to it.”

Robson cleaned the tube and when he was ready gave it to Scully.

“OK, here’s what we’re going to do. I’ll open his mouth and you’ll put the wood between his left molars to keep it open. Then I will tilt his head and you will take over to keep it that way. Therefore you better come over here,” she directed him. “I’ll then insert the tube, hopefully without hurting him, and then will drip water in.”

“Sounds barbaric.”

“It’s the best I can come up with right now. Normally, the patient drinks water with salts and sugars him- or herself, but we don’t have this here now and this still can be done once help has arrived. I must warn you, he might vomit and then we immediately need to stop and turn his head so he won’t choke to death.”

Robson nodded quietly and Scully assured him: “You’ll do just fine, Jeff.”

xxxx

After they had made all necessary and possible preparations, they got to work.

Scully skillfully opened Mulder’s mouth, Robson put the piece of wood between his teeth. After that, Scully tilted Mulder’s head in position, lifted his chin and held him until Robson took over. They worked quietly, only interrupted by Scully’s encouragements.

Then came the tube.

With the light from the fire and mine lamps Robson had found and lit, Scully was able to see just enough and she carefully inserted the rubber tube.

“Thank God, it’s long enough,” she sighed when she was certain that it had gone down the whole length of Mulder’s esophagus and into his stomach.

Scully turned to grab the bottle of water, when Mulder came to and began to struggle. His eyes were wide with panic and he desperately tried to spit out the tube.

Robson was shocked and Scully shouted: “Keep him still, just keep him still!”

She grabbed Mulder’s hands and held them tight and sat on his legs, so he couldn’t move.

“Mulder! Mulder stop. Please. Look at me. Mulder look at me!”

His eyes came into focus but he was still choking and trying to get rid of the intruder.

“You’ve been intubated. You have to relax and lay still. Don’t fight the tube, we’re taking it out soon. Do you hear me? Hush now. That’s it. Breathe slowly through your nose, in and out. In and out. That’s it. In and out. Close your eyes, it’ll be over soon. In and out.”

“Why don’t we remove the tube?” Robson whispered when Mulder finally complied.

“I want to make sure he gets enough fluids. If he passes out again, we’ll have to repeat the procedure, I don’t want to do that,” Scully whispered back and then to Mulder “It’s OK, nothing will happen to you. Keep breathing, Mulder. It’s over soon.”

Scully released Mulder’s hands and picked up the bottle again. She then began with the rehydration process.

“Jeff, could you hold his head again please? I’ll be going slowly, starting now.”

xxxx

It were excruciating minutes until half of the bottle was inside Mulder.

His hands were clutched into fists and Scully could see that it took all of his weak self-control to not panic.

“We’ll take a break now to give his stomach a rest, but we should get the other half in, too.”

Mulder tried to speak but Scully stopped him.

“Don’t try to speak. You can’t with the tube down your throat. It won’t be much longer and then you can talk again. OK?” She caressed his cheek and he told her with his eyes that he had understood.

They were quiet for a couple of minutes and then Scully said: “OK, he’s taking it very well. We’ll continue.”

The other half of the bottle was instilled with the same carefulness and finally, Robson released Mulder’s head.

“I’m taking the tube out now. Mulder, can you cough?”

He nodded.

“OK, I want you to cough when I pull. Ready? One, two, three, cough!”

Mulder coughed and with a swift and expert move, Scully extracted the tube.

Gasping for air, Mulder shortly grew agitated but Scully was there in an instant to soothe him.

“You did it. Mulder, you did it but you have to lie down. You’ve got a very high fever and it takes some time until you’re rehydrated. We called for help and the SAR team should be here any minute. They’ll fly us out and take you to a hospital.”

“Thank you, Scully,” Mulder croaked.

“Don’t mention it,” Scully smiled.

“I mean it, Scully. In Man vs. Wild, Bear rehydrated himself by putting a hose in his ass. I’m very thankful you didn’t do that to me.”

“Mulder, you spent too much time in front of the TV when you were in isolation…”

“Yeah, but I learned some pretty cool skills from Bear, too. Scully?”

“Hmm?”

“Kushtaka. It’s real.”

“We can talk about it later. You have to recover now.”

“No, Scully. I saw it. It was real, it wanted to attack me but something stopped it. You have to believe me, it’s out there and we have to find it.”

He struggled to get up but it only took Scully’s firm hand on his chest to keep him down.

“Mulder, you have a very high fever and you were dehydrated. When we found you, you were barely alive. Whatever you think you saw came from your feverish mind.”

“No, it was real. I saw it, it was a creature. I’ve never seen anything like it before.”

“We’ll talk about it later. When your fever’s down and you’re feeling better.”

“Agent Scully?” Robson, who had left the mine, returned. “Agent Scully, the SAR team is on its way but the chopper can’t land here. We’ll need to carry Agent Mulder back to the lake, asap.”

“Scully NO,” Mulder fought, “we need to find Kustaka.”

“Do you think, you can carry him when he’s struggling, Jeff?”

“I’ll do my best.”

With that, Robson picked Mulder up and over his shoulders again and the three left for the lake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note that I'm not a medical expert and that the procedure is most likely in no way correct or recommended.


	24. - Twenty-four -

A few days later, Scully found herself once again at the South Peninsula Hospital in Homer.

She had just returned from a meeting with Sergeant Robson who had led the search for Daniel Rickards and she knew that what she was going to tell her partner would not make him happy.

Scully knocked on the door to the private room and entered quietly. Mulder lay on a bed by the window, his eyes were closed and he was breathing deeply.

She sat next to his bed and took his hand into hers. How many hours had she spent in hospitals just like this? Would it ever change?

Scully watched Mulder sleep for a while. He looked peaceful and unaware. She liked watching him sleep. His worries and concerns gone from his face, his breathing deep and relaxed. He wasn’t having a nightmare – which was rare. So many times had she been awakened by him fighting monsters in his dreams, screaming and desperately searching for herself or for his sister. When the darkness had fully descended upon them, she didn’t sleep in the same bed anymore. She couldn’t.

Now she had to decide if she wanted to start all over again, to risk her current spiritual wellbeing to the possibly returning threat.

What the past days had taught her was that she was still stronger in love with Mulder than she had ever admitted to herself and that the promise of a renewed relationship with him (at her terms) filled her with happiness.

“I can hear you thinking,” Mulder’s voice brought her back to the present.

“Hey,” she smiled.

“Hey yourself. How long have you been here?”

“A couple of minutes maybe, not too long,” Scully paused.

“You can tell me, you know? I think I already know anyway.”

“I’ve just come from a meeting with Robson and his team,” she began and Mulder regarded her intently.

“They have found Daniel Rickards. He’s dead Mulder.”

“Kushtaka.”

“Well, no. They think it was a grizzly.”

“Scully…” Mulder sighed.

“Mulder, Robson and I saw a grizzly not far from where we found you. It’s the most plausible explanation.“

“Scully, it wasn’t a bear that I saw. It was something else. You have to believe me!”

“There were no traces of anything else at all, except bears and game.“

“I know what I saw, damned,” Mulder angrily beat on the mattress.

To not escalate the conversation, Scully didn’t question his sighting or bring up his fever again. Instead, she informed: “It doesn’t really matter anymore, Mulder. They have found Rickards and they have sealed the mine and filled the holes, the wells respectively. There is nothing left for us to do and Skinner has already arranged for your transportation back to DC in the morning.”

“I have to go back to the woods. I need to find it!” Mulder tried to get up but Scully held him back.

“Mulder, you will not do such a thing. This is exactly what I feared would happen and this is exactly what I will not tolerate again if you want me to come back to you.”

Mulder slumped back as if all energy was drained from him.

“So our reports will say?”

“Our reports will say that Daniel Rickards, Troy Yonge and George Pearson abducted those hikers because they had gotten too close to the mine and found out about them. They killed them and to cover their tracks, they disfigured them to keep the lore of the monster in the woods alive.”

“It doesn’t make sense, Scully. The mine was miles away from the hiking trail. How could they have ever found out?”

“I don’t know, Mulder. Maybe they saw Danny, Troy and George when they transported supplies or gear.”

“What are the odds that seven hikers at different times on different dates all see Danny, Troy and George and get abducted and killed by them? Danny, Troy and George knew what they were doing. They were careful! It doesn’t make sense!”

“It makes more sense than a demon which changes from an otter into a man and vice versa.”

“So, that’s it then? Another unsolved X-File?”

“We solved this one. We got the killers.”

“This is unsatisfactory, Scully.”

“And yet it’s over. I know you wanted to find a real monster, Mulder but monsters come in all kinds of shapes and we definitely caught some very mean ones.”

xxxx

October had come and the leaves had turned golden. The sun shone and the air was pleasant.

Mulder stood outside a building on F Street, in walking distance from the FBI headquarters, nervously toying with his jacket.

He didn’t hear or see Scully approach and when she touched his shoulder to greet him, he spun around shocked.

“Whoa, easy Mulder!” Scully soothed and kissed him on the cheek.

“I’m sorry, I was… I was thinking.”

“Yeah, I figured. I’m sorry I’m late. Agent Thurlow wouldn’t let me go.”

“No problem, I thought I’d better be early than late.”

“Thank you for that and thank you for doing this with me,” Scully smiled. “You ready?”

“I’m nervous and a little afraid,” Mulder admitted.

“I feel the same, but we agreed to do this, didn’t we?”

“Yeah, I want to do this,” he took a deep breath. “Alright then, let’s fight this monster.”

Mulder held the door for Scully and she entered first. 

The door sign read ‘Nelson Smithe, Psy. D., Marriage Counseling’.

\- The End -

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, thank you for reading and commenting. I hope you enjoyed the story a bit.


End file.
